The Princess and the Samurai
by Animation Universe 2005
Summary: A princess is coming over to the Valley of Peace to find a suitor for her...but suddenly, a young noodle worker named Samurai caught her eye, despite the fact that he's a peasant. One royal prince is willing to go above and beyond to stop her from falling for the peasant, yet the peasant's true self wins the princess over. Will it succeed? You'll have to read and see! Enjoy!
1. Normal Day at Work

You all know the Bushido-Akio's right? I decided to have one of Mako's kids take the spotlight in his own story; Samurai. This was inspired by a Mickey Mouse short where a humble peasant wins the princess' heart yet the king disapproves. This one is gonna be a little bit more different and Samurai meets a princess and something amazing happens. Hope you guys like!

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The Princess and the Samurai

by: Terrell James

Chapter 1: Normal Day at Work

It's one afternoon at the Valley of Peace and Samurai is working as hard as ever at Mr. Ping's Noodle Shop as he chopped up a couple of fresh vegetables to go along with a couple of soup specials to add some more depth and flavor into them and as he was doing so, he saw Okami carrying a huge crate full of vegetables and he walks over and said, "Need some help?"

"Yeah, these are really heavy." Okami said, straining.

With that, Samurai grabbed the other part of the crate as he and Okami took the crates over towards the storage part of the kitchen so that the vegetables will remain fresh throughout the course of the day or whenever they're needed to use and they set them down on the ground. Samurai panted heavily as he wiped the sweat off of his brow and said, "That's a big crate."

"Yeah, it is. Thanks, Sammy." Okami replied.

"No problem." Samurai said, heading back to kitchen.

As he got back doing his kitchen prep duties, he placed most of the veggies inside the soup along with the noodles and he placed the bowls in a tray so that they can make way to the tables that have been ordered and as he brought it over there, he could see a couple of customers that were completely positive towards him and it just made his work day all the more easier and as he headed back to the kitchen to do some more prep work, it was time for his lunch break.

It's one of his favorite parts of work that he gets to head back to the house to get himself something to eat there and as he walks over to the house, he enters inside and heads to the kitchen to get some food to nibble on before heading back to work and as he was doing so, he noticed Max and Arizona coming in there with baby Jacob and he said, "Hey, guys."

"Hi, Sam." Arizona said, happily.

"What you doing home from work?" asked Max.

Samurai looked at Max with a glare and he replied, "It's my lunch break. You know I always come here for my lunch break every Wednesday and Friday."

"Oh, okay." Max replied.

Samurai grabbed himself a bowl of chow mein noodles, leftover egg rolls and some rice and Arizona looked at what Samurai's gotten and he said, "Dude...you must be really hungry."

"What do you think?" asked Samurai, glaring at him.

Arizona backs away for a while and defends himself from further issues and just kept his mouth shut and Samurai asked Max, "You've been helping Arizona with Jacob?"

"Yep. I've been a big helper." Max replied.

"Very big helper...except when it comes to changing Jake's diaper." Arizona stated.

Max glared at him in response to that and he said, "I don't wanna be too close to something stinky, Arizona."

"Guys...I'm eating here. Can you guys take the whole diaper changing thing somewhere else, please?" asked Samurai.

Arizona could see his point across as he and Max left the room to keep Samurai from losing his appetite and while he was eating, he could hear a distant fanfare coming through the village and he was completely curious as to where this is coming from and what's going on and as he was taking some of his lunch with him, he walked out of the door and noticed that there was a barrage of royal people walking around and he was surprised that there's some royal folk coming in.

"What are they doing here?" asked Samurai.

* * *

Sounds like someone important is coming to the Valley of Peace. Who can it be? Stay tuned to find out!

**Voice of Samurai: Josh Peck**

**Voice of Okami: Yvette Nicole Brown**

**Voice of Arizona: Scott Wolf**

**Voice of Max: Ben Diskin**


	2. Royal Princess

And in enters a king and the princess!

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Chapter 2: Royal Princess

Before long, the royal people's presence garnered a whole lot of attention from everyone in the village, wondering what all the hubbub was all about and why they're here and Samurai was a little curious as to what's happening there and soon enough, one of the royal servants came in, opening up a scroll and said, "Hear ye, hear ye! Everyone in this valley, we are gathered here from our kingdom to see who is worthy or royal enough to have a date with the king's daughter, Princess Zia-Lin and to see who will be next in line to be her prince."

Once Samurai heard that, he knew he wasn't really the royal type because he thinks that they're too snooty and wouldn't want anything to do with anyone outside of the royalty environment and he just didn't want too much attention for that particular matter.

"Wonder what this princess looks like?" asked Samurai.

Before long, the royal servants brought in the princess; a 19-year old South China Tigress with a golden-silver encrusted tiara on her head and is wearing a nightgown-dress hybrid with multiple sapphires all over the dress and holding a staff and every servant said, "Wave hello to the princess."

The villagers waved at the princess and Samurai reluctantly waved to the princess as the servants carried her with her little throne and Sam could hear a few demands coming out of the princess and that immediately turned Samurai off that anyone could be so high-strung into this royalty phase and after hearing that someone could date her, Samurai knew that there's no chance.

"And I would like to let you know, anyone who's a peasant...should not come within close proximity of the princess. The king does not mingle with peasants because they are second rate." one second-in command servant said.

And that literally made Samurai a little ticked as he walked back to the house and he finished up his lunch and Max comes downstairs and he said to Samurai, "Hey, did you see some princess walking by?"

"Yeah, I did. Those royal people think that they're way better than us and that we wish to be like them...I have nothing against them whatsoever, but you wouldn't see me be in that position." Samurai replied.

"Maybe you should date her, Samurai." Max added.

"No thanks, Max. Besides...the princess looks so beautiful and I'm kinda...nerdy and husky. No princess would want to date someone like me." Samurai replied.

"Maybe if you'd ask the king." Max suggested.

Samurai scoffed at this and he said, "The king? The king's got an ego the size of the Dragon Warrior's butt. I'd rather wash Tigress' underwear for a week than kiss up to that king."

Max didn't know how to respond to that and he said, "Okay then."

Samurai sighed heavily at this and he said, "I'm gonna head back to work. If mom or dad comes back home, tell them I'm gonna be coming home a little late."

"Okay, bye." Max said.

"Later, bro." Samurai said, heading back to the noodle shop.

* * *

Wow...Samurai's got a little bit of a lack of confidence when it comes to girls. You'll see the two royals in the next chapter! Stay tuned!

**Voice of royal servants: Jim Cummings, Rob Paulsen**

**Voice of second-in-command: Kevin Michael Richardson**


	3. Face to Face with Royalty

And they finally meet the royals coming to Mr. Ping's Noodle shop!

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Chapter 3: Face to Face with Royalty

Soon after Samurai got back to work, he met up with Okami in the kitchen and he noticed that a couple of people were marveling at the sight of the royal family coming around their village and Okami said, "Did you see those royals coming through the village?"

"Yeah, I saw them." Samurai replied.

Okami was pretty much intrigued by their presence, but at the same time, she's not really a huge fan of royalty because of how they look, talk, dress, act and their attitudes as such because they tend to have higher standards and she said, "They must be living the high life."

"Very huge. I heard that they're announcing that someone wants to date this princess...which is the king's daughter." Samurai answered.

"Sounds interesting." Okami added.

"Yeah, if you're not a peasant." Samurai said, with a scoff.

"See, this is why I would never do service with royals. They always have their noses up in the air and tend to think they're better than all of us. I mean, if a king tells me that I would be his queen, this is what I would do; I would slap him straight in the face and bite him in the royal junk." Okami added, with a slight growl hidden.

Samurai was pretty much surprised that Okami would actually do those things, but then of course...he has seen his fair share of someone crossing Okami when it comes to rude customers or those that want to flirt with her, but she crosses them in a professional manner that doesn't involve sticking a claw in someone's tail...unless she's off work.

"You wouldn't really do that, wouldn't you?" asked Samurai.

"Not in front of their royal subjects." Okami replied, with a smirk.

Samurai was a little speechless to hear that from Okami and he chuckled softly and said, "Remind me to never cross you."

Just then, Mr. Ping comes over and sees the two of them and asked, "What are you both doing here? The king and the princess are here at the Noodle Shop!"

"Here?" asked Samurai.

"Yes, here. Serve the princess and the king, please! We would love for them to have some of our wonderful food!" Mr. Ping exclaimed.

Samurai knew that this would be something he would never expect to do, but he sighed heavily and replied, "Yes, Mr. Ping."

"Okami, the princess would like some tea. And make sure it is not too hot or too cold. She likes it in between." Mr. Ping replied.

"Yes, sir." Okami replied.

With that, Mr. Ping walked out of there while Samurai and Okami looked at each other with a little bit of dread, but being able to go face to face with royalty could boost the noodle shop's reputation if necessary and Okami said, "Well..let's go and meet them."

"All right." Samurai replied.

With that, Okami and Samurai walked towards the kitchen and they came face to face with the royal family from South China and the king took one look at the noodle shop workers and he said, "Give me your best noodles around. And some egg rolls too and a medium-sized dumpling."

"Daddy, what is the biggest dumpling they have?" asked the princess.

"My daughter wants to know what's your biggest dumpling you have." the king responded.

"We have a Dragon Warrior sized dumpling." Samurai replied.

"Oh, no, no, no, no, That simply will not do. My daughter has to watch her figure. She can't have that kind of food in her system...especially if she wants to end up looking like you." the king said, with a smirk.

Okami was definitely offended to hear that coming from the king and that seemed to send Samurai in a shockwave that the king actually called him out in front of them and the princess groaned in embarrassment after hearing that and she turned to Samurai and said, "I'll take that Dragon Warrior sized dumpling, please."

That pretty much alarmed the king to no limit and he asked, "Nonsense! I will not have my daughter overweight with this...peasantry food."

Samurai sighed heavily and took the order anyway and he said, "Okay, so that will be two bowls of noodles, some egg rolls and one Dragon Warrior sized dumpling. We'll get that for you right away."

"See that you do." the princess replied.

As soon as the royal family took their seats, Samurai was fuming inside that the king pointed out his weight towards everyone and he said, "Okami...now I want to punch this guy in the royal balls...hard."

* * *

Man, the king was rude, wasn't he? If that was you guys, what would you do? Stay tuned for more!

**Voice of Mr. Ping: James Hong**

**Voice of the king: Daran Norris**

**Voice of the princess Zia-Lin: Ariana Grande**


	4. Little Attraction

After that little scenario, the princess is taking a bit of an interest in Samurai for some reason...

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Chapter 4: Little Attraction

While all the royal subjects were waiting for their food, the princess just noticed that this place is a lot different from what she was used to be in and she's been in so much fabulous, fancy places before and this was the total opposite of where she has always traveled, but for some reason...this kinda really suits to her liking very much and she could get used to being in this place.

Her father though...was not so much a big fan of this setting at all because it's less fabulous and less fancy and wished that he could get back to the palace where he's from, but he does have a reason for coming there; to see if his daughter would go on a date with her that's up to her father's standards and that he would approve of it. Anyone whose less than would never have that opportunity to have that chance because he would tell them that they have no chance because they're not good enough for her.

However...Zia-Lin sees this a little differently as she looks at Samurai prepping some food and she couldn't stop staring at him and despite his husky appearance and size, she could tell that there's something about him that's kinda connecting really well. Despite the fact that he is a noodle shop worker and in her father's perspective...a peasant, Zia-Lin could tell that she's very interested in him.

"Zia-Lin...I hope that when you find the one you want to spend eternity with that you can conduct yourself as a young lady. You will be the envy of everyone in this wretched place." the king stated.

"Daddy...what's wrong with finding someone that I want to choose?" asked Zia-Lin.

"I won't let you spend eternity with one who's less than royalty. You really have to end this rejection of anyone that wants to court with you." the king stated.

"But those guys are just so arrogant, self-centered and want something from me." Zia-Lin responded.

"Still though...I only want what's best for my little princess. You know you have to be married by your next birthday and when you find someone who's worthy enough to marry you, he's got to be loyal, compassionate, understanding and knows how to keep up with the royalty lifestyle." the king responded.

"Daddy...if I do want to marry, I want it for true love, not a title." Zia-Lin replied.

The king felt like he's getting really frustrated with what she wants as opposed to what he wants for his daughter and he said, "How can I make you understand that this is what I want you to do? This is the best thing that's ever happened to you."

Zia-Lin knows better than to argue about this and she lets out a defeated sigh and said, "I understand."

"Very well then." the king replied.

Soon enough, Samurai comes in with the orders of food and he said, "Okay...here's your noodles. Best ones around the valley and your order of egg rolls as requested. And for the princess...the same order as well as well as your tea."

"Thank you." Zia-Ling said, politely.

"Very well. Now...give me your best rice." the king stated.

"Yes, your highness." Samurai replied.

"Excuse me...where's my dumpling?" asked Zia-Lin.

"Your Dragon Warrior sized dumpling will be here momentarily." Samurai responded.

"Okay, thank you." Zia-Lin added.

After Samurai walks off, Zia-Lin couldn't resist staring at him from behind and it's like something hit her that made her realize that the same exact noodle shop server might be different from many other guys she's been accustomed to. The king clears his throat to catch his daughter's attention and once she caught his attention, he said, "We don't condone with outsiders. This young man is a peasant. Keep in mind who you're accompanied with."

"Yes, father." Zia-Lin responded.

But...she was still staring at Samurai while he's getting the Dragon Warrior sized dumpling all ready for the princess and he said, "Here's your dumpling. Sorry it took so long."

"Oh, it's perfectly fine. Thank you so much." Zia-Lin replied.

"Enjoy yourself." Samurai replied, smiling.

Then, that smile of his really sealed the deal; she was officially liking Samurai and after he walked back, she thought to herself, 'I might finally have found the one I like...for myself.'

* * *

Did Zia-Lin find a love interest on her own? Wonder where that will lead to? Find out more!


	5. Afterhours

Samurai and Okami working afterhours after the royal visit at the restaurant.

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Chapter 5: Afterhours

A couple of hours after that, Samurai was cleaning up a few tables after this big day of serving the royalty while Okami was cleaning up the shop as well and while Samurai was cleaning up the tables, he noticed some coins leaving in the same table that the king and the princess were eating there and he was actually a little surprised that someone left him a tip and he accepted the tips and placed them on his knapsack and then...he figured that the opposite side of the table was where the princess was sitting in.

"Wow..." Samurai whispered.

After that, they closed the shop for the night while Mr. Ping goes off to get some rest for the night and Okami said, "Well...I guess we have a big day."

"Very big. I'm surprised that you didn't come in attack while the king was here." Samurai replied.

"Yeah, I could've clawed his royal face off if he talked smack about me. But I knew I could've done it if he talked smack about you. I mean...who the hell does he think he is?" asked Okami.

Samurai chuckled softly and said, "He's the king."

"Very true. I pity the fool who dates this high-faluting princess." Okami added.

Samurai chose not to say anything negative about the princess, yet at the same time...he's not that quite keen on being in royalty and all the other things that come along with it either and he only said, "Yeah, some people."

"I'll be seeing you tomorrow, Samurai." Okami said.

Samurai nodded as well and he said, "No probs. Tell your kids I said 'hey'."

"Will do." Okami said, walking home.

Samurai walked the other way back to his home and he took a deep breath and when he finally made it back home, he could smell the aroma of cooked food coming in and it helped him ease those exhaustion away from him and he lets out a deep sigh as he took off his sandals and walked over to the kitchen and he said, "Smells pretty good here."

"Hey, Samurai. How was work?" asked Mako.

Samurai sighed heavily and said, "Exhausting, dad. Wait until you hear."

"So...I hear that there's some royal people coming over to the Valley of Peace." Mako responded.

Suddenly, Samurai was surprised to hear that and he had no idea that his father actually knew about this and he asked, "How'd you find out?"

"It's all over the valley. Apparently, the king was to find someone who's worthy enough to date his daughter." Mako replied.

"Yeah, I heard." Samurai added.

"That sounds pretty exciting. Only downside to that is that the king calls us second rate peasants." Mako added.

"That's the problem with these royals; they always think they're better than us." Samurai added.

"What makes you think that, Sam?" asked Mako.

"Well...the king came over to the noodle shop with the princess and he ordered me and Okami everything they wanted to have and figured we would have the best of everything. The king insulted me with my weight and how I'm nothing more than a lowly noodle-shop worker. That's kinda messed up." Samurai replied.

"He did what?" asked Mako, a little surprised.

"Yeah. That's what he said to me. But I just shook it off and went straight to work." Samurai responded.

"Good for you. I wouldn't catch myself serving those royals if they talk to me like that." Mako added.

Samurai sighed heavily and he said, "All I want to do is rest up, maybe read a few comics and eat some dinner."

"Dinner's gonna be about an hour away, so take all the time you need." Mako added, as he's chopping a few veggies.

"Thanks, dad." Samurai said, with a smile as he headed up to his room.

* * *

Samurai's a hard worker, isn't he? Stay tuned for more to see what happens with the princess!

**Voice of Mako: Kyle Hebert**


	6. The Time Has Come

Now...the princess meets a few young royals to have her heart and she is interested in none of them and then...comes a big twist.

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Chapter 6: The Time Has Come

The next day, everyone in the valley were enamored by the sight of many young royals; ranging from duke, prince, future king and many others to come over in the hopes to win the affection of dating the princess and before long, they were heading to one place where it's gonna be held at...which is very unexpected; at the Jade Palace. The entire palace was flooded with crowds as they want to see who's lucky enough to date the princess.

Samurai looked ahead and noticed that everyone else was heading to the Jade Palace to see the action take place and he was a little curious as to see what's going on there and see whether or not they'll get the princess. He braved the entire crowds all across those steps as he tried to get a closer glimpse on what's happening.

Meanwhile, the Jade Palace masters were completely overwhelmed with the amount of royals that are showing up for this type of day and didn't expect that many people to come over...let alone some well known royalty to attend. The king looks on as the princess sat on her throne to see who's worthy enough to go on a date with her.

The first royal was a young prince, wearing all types of capes and a big hat to go on top of it and as he looks at the princess, he has a bit of a smirk and said, "Princess...it would be an honor to accompany you to a date with the lovely Prince Zamboia of Uganda."

Zia-Lin looked at him for a second and he could tell that the young lion has been grooming his mane...which is his only concern as to how it'll attract many other ladies and almost immediately, Zia-Lin rejects him. The king snapped his fingers and escorted the young prince out and the king knew that this was gonna be a very long day.

Throughout most of the morning, Zia-Lin has looked on every single future king and prince that many are willing to go above and beyond for to impress the princess; from flexing his muscles, doing a little dance, playing the flute, kissing her hand and also trying to kiss her unexpectedly and even one went as far as to keep her safe...with multiple weapons all over himself. The latter part completely freaked the princess out and with that...Tigress and Viper escorted him out.

As they did so, Tigress asked that prince, "Are you any good at kung-fu?"

The king began to be increasingly frustrated over the fact that Zia-Lin has rejected every suitor that even comes to call and he said, "Is anyone really worthy to date my daughter?"

"I am!"

Just then, Zia-Lin became familiar with that voice and noting that it was the one annoying, yet very arrogant person that might assume he had some 'history' with her and when he showed up, this big blue and black striped tiger came forward, who's in his early 20's and came over to Zia-Lin and said, "I would date you. You would never find anyone else better than me and together...we can rule the kingdom."

"Macao...how many times have I told you that I will never date you?" asked Zia-Lin.

"About 7 million times." Macao replied.

"Make that 7 million and one. And I've said no that many times before. You're not my type." Zia-Lin responded.

Macao chuckled with a smirk on his face and said, "You made a funny. Listen to me...you're gonna be my wife and when will you get it through your thick skull? You're gonna be my queen."

Zia-Lin growled at him and she kicked him in the nuts and said, "Macao...even if you were a king, I would never be your queen!"

"Oh, really? You think that you won't be a queen without me?" Macao asked, getting completely serious.

Just then, Samurai had finally made it to the entrance of the palace and when he got to the front, he saw Macao getting all in the princess' face, demanding that he'd marry her and he figured that this is no way to treat a princess like that and he immediately stepped in and said, "Hey, buddy! Leave her alone!"

Just then, everyone turned to Samurai as he called out Macao and no one really knew that he'd actually do that and Macao turned to Samurai and said, "What is a peasant like you doing here?"

"First of all, I'm not a peasant. Secondly, that's not how you ask out a girl...especially a princess." Samurai said, very seriously.

"What do you know about royalty?" asked Macao, with a smirk.

"Nothing...but I know about how you treat a lady. If she says she doesn't wanna go out with you, she doesn't wanna go out with you. What's wrong with you, dude?" asked Samurai.

"How dare you talk to me like that?" asked Macao, growling.

Zia-Lin stood up and she stared at both boys, assuming that they're fighting for her and she got in the middle and broke this up and said, "I will not allow this!'

"Should I throw the peasant out, princess?" asked one servant.

"Actually, no. Don't throw him out." Zia-Lin replied.

Then, another servant comes over and asked, "What are you gonna do with this one?"

Zia-Lin walked over to Samurai and she looked at him in the eye and responded, "I want you to be my date."

That immediately surprised Samurai in a state of shock and asked, "What?"

"What?!" Macao asked.

"What?!" the king asked.

"What?!" everyone in the crowd asked.

The fact that Zia-Lin wanted Samurai as the person to go on a date with is a little shocking for Samurai because he did not expect that to happen so suddenly and said, "Why me?"

* * *

Whoa! Samurai's picked to be Zia-Lin's date! That just shows that Zia-Lin is not your ordinary, everyday princess. See how this one plays out!

**Voice of young royals: Scott Menville, Greg Cipes, Corey Feldman, Jack DeSena**

**Voice of Macao: Sean Astin**

**Voice of Tigress: Kari Wahlgren**


	7. A Princess' Choice

Jaw-dropping! You get to see why Zia-Lin chose Samurai as her choice as a date.

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Chapter 7: A Princess' Choice

Everyone was still stunned over the fact that Zia-Lin has actually chosen Samurai to be her date and the king was completely furious about his daughter's choice and he immediately stepped in and said to her, "Have you lost your senses completely?! He's a peasant! You're a princess! You shouldn't subject yourself to people who are not our kind!"

"For once, can it be my choice to determine on who I should date?" asked Zia-Lin.

"That's my duty! I decide who is worthy enough for you and I believe that this young man is not right for you!" the king exclaimed.

Samurai clears his throat and he said, "Sir, if I may..."

"Silence!" the king shouted, cutting him off.

Zia-Lin scoffs at that and she couldn't believe that her father is not allowing her to have a say over who she should date and she said, "Daddy, you don't even know him!"

"I know him well enough after that noodle shop! You know better than to date a lowly noodle-shop worker!" the king exclaimed.

Zia-Lin growls at this and she said, "Daddy, he may be that...but at least give me a chance to get to know him. For once, I would like to date someone who's not of royal descent or even someone rich."

All of the servants and royal subjects gasped in surprise after hearing what the princess just said and that further shocked and provoked her father to no limit and he said, "I can't believe you just said that!"

Then, she turned to Samurai and she walked over to him and asked, "Would you like to date me?"

It became really surprising for Samurai to wrap his head around and he blinked his eyes a few times and he replied, "Why me?"

"Because there's something about you that I like and I want to know what it is." Zia-Lin replied.

"But...wouldn't your royal servants think otherwise? I mean...I'm just a person that works for a living to support my family and help contribute." Samurai replied.

Zia-Lin looked at Samurai for a second and she blinked her eyes and said, "I'm willing to take that chance."

The king felt like he was gonna get nowhere for this and he lets out a deep sigh and walked over to the young man and asked, "What is your name?"

"Samurai."

"Samurai? Like the samurai sword?" asked the king.

Samurai nodded his head in response to that and he replied, "Yeah, it is kinda weird that I'm named after a Samurai sword...even though it's really cool."

"And just what are you intentions with my daughter?" asked the king.

Samurai scratched the back of his head after that question was asked and he replied, "You know...I don't really know. I mean, I'm still trying to get over that surprising proposition because I didn't really expect that to happen."

"Did you get my tip?" asked Zia-Lin.

"Yeah, I still got my tip. Thanks." Samurai replied.

The king was even shocked to discover that those coins that she had were left for Samurai only and he asked, "You what?"

"Well...I left a few tips for his service last night." Zia-Lin answered.

"Sir...I know that I don't have a royal bloodline and that I may not be fancy and that I'm into any of that royalty stuff, but I know how to treat others the way they're supposed to be treated...like a real person; one with kindness, dignity and respect...and I'm no better than anyone else. I'm just like everyone." Samurai replied.

Suddenly, that one quality was shown right in front of Zia-Lin and that really made her choose her decision really well and she said, "Looks like I found a date."

The king eventually felt like this was his daughter's choice and even though he opposes it, he can't get in the way of her decisions and he lets out an exasperated sigh and said, "Very well. You may date him."

Zia-Lin smiled and she hugged her father and said, "Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"But if the magistrate finds out that my daughter is dating a peasant, it'll be on my head." the king said, with a growl.

"Forget about what the magistrate says. He's always on my good side." Zia-Lin retorted.

After all that, Samurai was both honored and a little nervous that he's gonna date a princess and he hopes that he'll make a good impression on her and maybe keep that to himself and only that. But...someone was not impressed with the princess' choice and it's not just the king that dislikes Samurai...but Macao began to become remotely jealous that even if this is their first date, Macao felt like Samurai is destroying his chances to end up with the princess.

"We will meet again...peasant." Macao said, with a growl.

* * *

Sounds like Samurai's found an antagonist...stay tuned for more!


	8. Talk of the Village

And pretty soon...Samurai's courageous conduct gave him reluctant unexpected fame.

* * *

Chapter 8: Talk of the Village

Soon after, Samurai was walking back home and along the way, he heard several whispers around the village about Samurai dating a princess and that almost seemed to make him a little bit of the villager's famous person, which Samurai is not used to at all and just then, a few villagers were bowing to him and waving hello to him almost as if he's the most popular guy around.

"This is getting weird." Samurai said, softly.

When he finally made it back home, he noticed Musaki, Arizona, Max, Phoenix, Blackhawk and Logan standing there and he said, "Hey, guys. What's going on?"

"You tell us, Sam. Or should we say...the future prince?" asked Musaki, with a bow.

Samurai could sense that he's getting the royal treatment from his family and Musaki started laughing at this and he said, "We're just joking."

"Word on the village is that you're going on a date with the Princess of South China. How did you even manage to get that happening?" asked Phoenix.

"And that you beat up the dude that tried to be all over the princess." Logan added.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa...guys. I didn't beat up that Macao dude. I just told him off that he should treat the princess like that." Samurai replied.

"We know you didn't beat him up. But a lot of those royals are claiming that you stood up to that Macao dude...whoever he is." Arizona added.

"So...does that mean you'll be a prince?" asked Max.

"Guys, listen. The princess chose me to date her and it took me by surprise. But that doesn't mean I'm gonna be a prince. I'm still the same person and that's never gonna change." Samurai responded.

"Yeah, because you're too weird to be a prince anyway." Logan added.

Samurai rolled his eyes at this and mocked Logan's words and said, "Don't worry. Royals don't do anything with peasants anyway."

Just then, Mako comes in the room and he looks at the boys and he turned to Samurai and said, "Hey, son. Heard you're dating a princess."

"Does anyone know about this? It's like no big deal." Samurai asked.

"Oh, but Samurai...it's just an honor for you to date a princess. And I know that you're a wonderful gentleman when it comes to girls." Mako added.

"And that's why Sam will never have one." Logan muttered.

Samurai clears his throat and glared at Logan and said, "I heard that."

* * *

Well...sounds like Samurai's getting famous. Stay tuned to see how this date will be!

**Voice of Musaki: Samuel Vincent**

**Voice of Arizona: Johnny Yong Bosch**

**Voice of Phoenix: Will Friedle**

**Voice of Logan: Cameron Boyce**


	9. Still Humble

Even with the newfound talk of the village, Samurai is still Samurai. Even the royal treatment couldn't change who he is.

* * *

Chapter 9: Still Humble

As the day reaches on, a couple of royal servants were heading to Samurai's house and they were holding everything that anyone of royal descent could ever want...and the most unexpected one to give to would be a peasant. And suddenly, as they were waiting for Samurai to come in, the door opens and there's Phoenix coming in and he was surprised to see those royals coming in their house, which took him by surprise.

"Hello." Phoenix said.

"Greetings. We are here to see Samurai. Is he present?" asked one royal servant.

Phoenix thought it was really weird that they're here to see Samurai and he said, "Yeah, he's here. You guys might wanna hurry though, because he's getting ready to go to work."

"It won't take but a minute." another servant responded.

With that, they came in the house and Phoenix immediately said, "Sam! Your royal servants are here!"

Just then, Samurai walked downstairs to shut Phoenix up before he found himself seeing every single royal servant in the house and he asked, "Hey, guys. What are you doing here?"

"We have come all this way to send you gifts and clothing for your date with Princess Zia-Lin." one servant replied.

Smaurai didn't quite know what to say, but once he saw all the fancy clothes, crowns and everything that goes along with it, he said, "You know...you guys didn't have to do this."

"Oh, but we have to. If you want to date the princess, you have to look like you're a part of royalty." another servant added.

"Listen, guys. I'm flattered, but there's really no need for all of those." Samurai stated.

"Nonsense! It's not every day that we have to make you look presentable for the princess." another servant added, giving him every ounce of clothes.

"We'd like to see you try them on." another one replied.

Samurai knew that this wouldn't be necessary to do so because he might be running late for work, but the shop doesn't open for another hour or so and he figured that he'll be willing to try on a few and Samurai said, "Okay. But if I get late and Mr. Ping whacks me in the head with a wok, I'll just say you guys held me up."

Within that time period, Samurai have tried out every single amount of clothes the servants brought him and Samurai had some in different colors; ranging from red, blue, burgundy, golden, sapphire, silver and everything that any royal can think of. Most of those are pants, shirts, capes and things like that and as Samurai looks at those, he didn't feel comfortable with just a few of them.

"Guys...I appreciate this, but I have to be honest; none of those are me." Samurai added.

"Well...which one suits you better? These are the finest threads around parts of China, Japan, Indonesia, Taiwan, India, Vietnam and Thailand." one servant responded.

"Ooh...sounds fancy." Phoenix responded.

Samurai glared at Phoenix for what he just said and responded by gritting teeth, "Not helping."

"Just saying, bro. You gotta look good for your date." Phoenix added.

"Don't you guys think that this is just too much? I mean...they look awesome, but they're not something I could wear." Samurai said.

"Well...what do you perfer?" asked one servant.

Suddenly, he brought in his new pair of blue and red checkered vest with a straw hat to match and as he walked over towards the servants, most of them were surprised to see Samurai's attire and one servant said, "That is what you're going to wear?"

"Yep. It's not as fancy as yours, but it's how I would wear if I were to go out on a date." Samurai answered.

Some of the servants were really surprised by Samurai's response, but they could see his point across and they nodded their heads in response and another servant said, "Well...if it fits you, it's fine."

"The only thing is...what will Zia-Lin think?" asked another servant.

"We'll just see whatever happens." Samurai replied.

* * *

How will the end result be? Find out next!


	10. The Date Has Come

This is it! Samurai's date is here!

* * *

Chapter 10: The Date Has Come

By the next day, everyone at the Bushido-Akio house were bursting with excitement over the fact that Samurai's dating a princess...despite the fact that Samurai sees it as just a normal date and they can't wait to see what he looks like in that outfit he chose and before long, Samurai comes downstairs with that vest and straw hat and everyone was taken aback by it and Reiko said, "Samurai, you look so handsome."

"Yeah, that princess would ddefintiely get her feet swept off by you." Cody stated.

"Aw, come on, Codes. You know I'm like the least attractive person in this family." Samurai said, chuckling.

"Don't say that, Sam. You know you're handsome. Even handsomer than your old man." Mako stated.

"I can't believe that my stepson is dating a princess. This could be such a huge honor for you." Reiko said, feeling excited.

"Mom...it's just a date." Samurai added.

"You're just too modest, Sammy." Luna added.

"I'm not gonna put that way over my head, you know. I'm just gonna be myself, regardless of how it turns out." Samurai answered.

"We want to know every single detail when you get back." Musaki added.

Just then, they heard a knock on the door and they could tell it's the princess coming in and Phoenix said, "That might be her."

* * *

Sorry for leaving it short! Just wanted the whole surprise thing coming! Stay tuned!

**Voice of Cody: Ryan Potter**

**Voice of Luna: Mae Whitman**

**Voice of Reiko: Salli Richardson**


	11. Official Date

The moment of truth! Zia-Lin and Samurai are dating!

* * *

Chapter 11: Official Date

Samurai was totally anxious, but really hopeful that this will be the best date he'll ever have with the princess and he looks at himself in the mirror to see if he looks good and luckily, he does. He took a few deep breaths before answering the door and once he opens it, he saw Zia-Lin looking very beautiful and elegant with a beautiful silver and sapphire dress and Samurai widened his eyes at the sight of her and he said, "Wow..."

"Hello, Samurai." Zia-Lin replied.

"You look so beautiful." Samurai said, almost speechless.

Zia-Lin looked at the attire Samurai has on and she was completely amazed by it and she said, "And you look so handsome as well."

"Thanks. I know it's not what you'd expect me to wear, so..." Samurai added.

"No, no, no, no. It's fine. I can tell that my servants had come over to get some clothes for you. But I'm totally fine with what you have right now." Zia-Lin replied.

"Really? Thanks." Samurai said, with relief.

Suddenly, Samurai heard an 'ahem' from someone and once he turned around, he noticed that his family was standing there and he felt completely embarrassed by this and he said, "Zia-Lin, I'd like to introduce you to my family."

Zia-Lin comes in the house and she said hello to them as Samurai introduced them to the family and Mako shook her hand and said, "It is an absolute pleasure to meet you, your highness."

"It is an honor to meet the father of my date." Zia-Lin replied, with a curtsy.

"So polite too." Reiko added.

And some of the younger kids were excited about meeting a princess as well and Max asked, "I bet being a princess is so much fun."

"Sometimes, it's fun. But it's actually a lot of work." Zia-Lin added.

"Boy, you must be really bossy." Zacharias added.

Samurai comes over to Zia-Lin's side and chuckled nervously at that response Zacharias said and he patted the little panda cub's head and said, "Isn't he cute?"

Zia-Lin giggled a little bit and she said, "It's fine. I'm truly not offended. I'm not always bossy. My father is."

"Excuse me, princess. We don't mean to interrupt, but it is time for us to go." one servant replied.

"Okay, we'll be right there." Zia-Lin added.

She comes over to Samurai and informed him that it's time to go and Samurai nodded his head and said, "Okay. I'll see you guys later."

"It was really wonderful meeting all of you." Zia-Lin said.

"You as well." Mako added.

"Have a good time, you two." Reiko said, sweetly.

"We will." Samurai said, as he escorted Zia-Lin out of the door and while they were gone, the family couldn't help but be smitten by the fact that Samurai's dating a princess.

"Wonder what that date will be like?" asked Logan.

* * *

Stay tuned and you'll see that Zia-Lin is not your ordinary princess.

**Voice of Zacharias: Tara Strong**


	12. The Real Zia-Lin

Samurai and Zia-Lin's date kicks off without a hitch and soon...you won't believe what the princess is really wearing.

* * *

Chapter 12: The Real Zia-Lin

Soon enough, the servants were told that they have to meet with the king and as they were gone, Zia-Lin lets out a huge sigh of relief and said, "Man, I thought they would never leave. Samurai, do you know any good restuarants around here?"

"We've got quite a few. Aside from Mr. Ping's noodle shop, we've got several chinese restaurants and they got Japanese ones as well. Bushido's is an amazing place to eat at because they got some of the best japanese foods all around." Samurai replied.

"I've been dying for Japanese food! My father wasn't so keen on japanese food, but I began to have a craving of those." Zia-Lin responded.

Samurai was really surprised that Zia-Lin has an interest of Japanese food and he has the same interest as well and he said, "That's really cool."

"Take me to this Bushido's." Zia-Lin responded.

Just then, they took quite a few walks towards the village and as Zia-Lin looks around, she saw people...being just normal and ordinary and living their lives as normal and it really made her think of everything that she has been accustomed to, almost like she wants to experience life beneath those royal walls and meeting real people...including Samurai. When she thought about it, being around someone outside of the royal setting is really something she truly desired; being adventurous and a risk-taker. She had a few signs of that and it's her chance to really have her true colors come in.

"Well...here we are. This is Bushido's. The coolest japanese restaurant around." Samurai said, showing her the place.

Zia-Lin took one look and she could not believe that it looks so huge and amazing and when they came in, she saw that this was something she never expected it to be; amazing ambience and also that it's really amazing and she said, "This is so amazing."

"Table for two?" the waiter said.

"Yes, please." Samurai replied.

They followed the waiter and as they took their seats, Zia-Lin asked Samurai to excuse herself and after a while, Samurai was looking at the menu to see what suits well for both of them and he takes off his straw hat and places it on his seat while he's waiting for Zia-Lin to come out.

After only a few minutes, Zia-Lin came out with a totally different outfit; a light-green chinese vest and some silk grey pants with some brass bands on her wrists and she walked to the table where Samurai was at and she said, "Hey, Samurai."

Samurai looks up and he noticed a little change in Zia-Lin and she still has the crown on her head and sat down on the other side of the table and Samurai said, "Zia-Lin?"

"Yeah, I know what you were thinking; why would a princess wear that? Honestly, because I can and I don't have have to be elegant and stuff, but I just want to be a normal person for once." Zia-Lin replied.

That really surprised Samurai to actually hear that from her and despite the fact that she's a princess, Samurai had figured that sometimes royals are people like everyone else and he totally got the message right from the start and he said, "Absoultely."

"So...let's just enjoy this date. Because I would really like to get to know you." Zia-Lin added.

"Me too." Samurai answered.

* * *

Who knew that the princess would wear a vest and sweatpants? Stay tuned to see more of the real Zia-Lin coming up!

**Voice of the waiter: Bill Fagerbakke**


	13. Just Being Normal

We see Zia-Lin as a normal girl as opposed to being a princess who wants nothing more to just be normal and that realness of her while being around Samurai gave her the chance to just be herself.

* * *

Chapter 13: Just Being Normal

At Bushido's, Samurai and Zia-Lin were eating some sushi, sashimi, seaweed, squid, unagi and many other japanese delicacies along with some noodles and rice and as the princess was eating those, she felt a huge amount of amazement as soon as she ate them and it's like anything she's ever tasted before and she said, "This is so amazing. I love these."

"It's awesome, huh? You can eat them with either chopsticks or with your hands. Personally, I'd prefer eating some of those with your hands. It's a lot better that way with seaweed, squid and unagi. It's that better." Samurai replied, eating some of the stuff with his hands.

Zia-Lin wasn't quite sure if she should do that, but if it's fine with Samurai...then it's no problem for her as she took that first leap into eating some squid with her hands and once she did that, she felt completely amazed that she did that and said, "Wow...that was amazing."

Samurai chuckled softly at this and he said, "See? It's a lot cool that way."

Zia-Lin then grabbed some chopsticks and took a bite on some of the Yakisoba noodles and she could not believe the amount of flavor it tasted and she said, "This is one of the best noodles ever!"

"Yep. I know it seems slightly ironic that I work at a noodle shop and that I'm eating noodles in a Japanese restaurant when you're in China." Samurai added.

Zia-Lin giggled for a quick second and as she was slurping her noodles, she noticed a little piece of Yakisoba noodles on top of Samurai's nose and she snickered a little bit and Samurai was a little curious as to what's so funny and once Samurai looked down on his nose, he saw a little piece of noodle dangling on his nose.

"How did that get there?" asked Samurai.

Zia-Lin smiled at this and she was giggling throughout that ordeal and she couldn't help but be tickled by Samurai and she had a good feeling about this guy because he's real, funny, genuine and completely honest. Not to mention...he's really a gentleman and has some compassion as well and she hopes that it'll grow into an actual relationship soon...if her father accepts the fact that she's dating a peasant.

After dinner, Samurai takes Zia-Lin over towards parts of the village and he shows her this one hangout place where everyone can just have fun, let loose and for one night, forget about their worries and leave them out there and Zia-Lin was amazed by how this looks like and she asked, "What is this place?"

"This is Xinjiang. It's this little hangout place where we just hang out, dance and things like that." Samurai replied.

"Things like...?" asked Zia-Lin.

"Talk, drink some juice and water, dance." Samurai replied.

"You think anyone would notice I'm a princess?" asked Zia-Lin.

"Not sure. Xinjiang treats everyone the same as locals; especially famous people, kung-fu masters and royals. They don't make a big deal about famous people because although they do come, they always treat everyone like they're family." Samurai replied.

Within minutes, Samurai and Zia-Lin were enjoying the ambiance and they started dancing with each other for a while and Samurai taught Zia-Lin some cool moves as they were dancing and Zia-Lin slowly got most of them right and before long, she got the hang of it and that surprised Samurai that the princess got it down pat and placed her own vibe on it.

"I'm a fast learner." Zia-Lin stated.

"Cool..." Samurai said, smiled.

Before long, both of them kept dancing with each other from the upbeat songs and through the slow songs where they slow danced and once Zia-Lin did slow dance with Samurai, she felt like she didn't want to let go for a millisecond and they stared into each other's eyes and smiled with each other and continued on dancing.

After that, Samurai walked Zia-Lin back to where the royals are staying and Zia-Lin smiled and said, "That was the best night of my life."

"Thanks. I'm glad you enjoyed it." Samurai replied.

"It just feels so wonderful on what it's like to be normal for today. No dealing with servants, my dad not hounding me about what I should or shouldn't do and not giving me the royal treatment." Zia-Lin stated.

"Or putting your noses above the peasants." Samurai stated.

"Yeah, that too. My dad always think that everyone else is second-rate and that they wish they had the life we have, but I don't really think that way. If I was a queen, I'd treat everyone equally and that every peasant should be who they are and that they're welcome to our palace for any amazing events." Zia-Lin responded.

Samurai widened his eyes at that and he said, "Wow...that's really amazing."

"Yeah. I like you, Samurai. You're different from all the other guys that my dad tried to set me up with thinking I might be good enough for, but they all turn out to be jerks or just embarrass themselves with their muscles, attitude and everything else. What I can't stand for is people trying to become something they're not." Zia-Lin added.

"That's also my pet peeve as well. You know, they think they want to fit in with everyone else, but all it does is make them look even more stupider than they were before." Samurai added.

"You...you're real. You're so sweet, honest, down-to-earth and you make me laugh. If I had known that there's people like that, I would've ditched the other guys for people like you." Zia-Lin stated.

"Thanks." Samurai replied, with a humble smile.

"Oh, princess Zia-Lin! We're so sorry about this! The king had a little meeting with us to discuss the future of your wedding." one servant said, rushing towards them.

Zia-Lin sighed at this marriage thing and she said, "I'm not really ready to be married yet."

"Well, that's what the king thinks. How was your date, by the way?" asked another servant.

"It was wonderful. Samurai took me to this amazing japanese delicacy and showed me around a little dance place. All in all, he's the perfect gentleman for a date." Zia-Lin replied.

One of them looked at Samurai and they can tell that Zia-Lin did have a good time with Samurai and they didn't expect her to be happy with dating a peasant and one of them said, "Good thing you brought her back in one piece."

"Of course I did." Samurai stated.

"Well...I hope to see you tomorrow, Samurai." Zia-Lin said.

Samurai nodded his head and he said, "I'm gonna have half a day off at the noodle shop tomorrow. Maybe we can meet up around then."

"Sounds great. Thanks, Samurai." Zia-Lin said.

"You're welcome." Samurai replied.

Zia-Lin walked with the king's servants and she looked back and smiled at Samurai and waved bye to her and Samurai waved back and as they were gone, Samurai took a deep sigh and realized that the first date...immediately summed up what's on his mind; he's got a little bit of feelings for her.

* * *

Wonder what Samurai and Zai-Lin are gonna do tomorrow? You'll have to wait and see!

**Voice of the servants: George Takei, Scott Adsit (aka Baymax from 'Big Hero 6')**


	14. Details on Date

And after the date, of course Samurai's gonna be pummeled with questions about the princess.

* * *

Chapter 14: Details on Date

Samurai headed back home and he knew that he'll be bombarded by questions about the date and he's bracing himself for the amount of random questions and as soon as he opened the door, everything was quiet, which really made him relieved. He silently closed the door behind him, took off his straw hat and sandals and made his way upstairs to his room and suddenly...

"Samurai, is that you?"

Samurai could hear Mako's voice from a mile away and he said, "Yeah, it's me."

Mako came over to the hallway and saw his son standing there and he asked, "So...how did your date go?"

"It was a good date." Samurai replied.

"I bet it was awesome to date a princess." Phoenix said, coming in with a robe.

Samurai rolled his eyes for a second and then he asked, "Is that my robe?"

"Yeah, mine was still hanging out to dry." Phoenix replied.

Just then, in comes Musaki, Arizona, Logan and Max coming out and they wanted to ask Samurai a few questions about the date with the princess and that didn't surprise Samurai one bit and he calmed them all down by simply saying, "I just got back on my date and it was a really good date."

"Did you kiss her?" asked Max.

Samurai glared at Max for a few minutes and he replied, "No, I didn't kiss her."

"Too scared to lip-lock or tongue kiss a princess?" asked Logan.

Mako elbowed Logan's arm after that unexpected question and said, "Logan..."

Samurai was blushing after that particular comment Logan just stated out and he said, "I'm gonna call it a night. See you guys in the morning."

Samurai made his way to his room to get some sleep...and to get away from that question Logan just asked him and as he went to his room, he laid down on his bed with a huge sigh, but he began thinking about Zia-Lin anyway and smiled at the fact that he was dating a princess...but he can clearly see that that certain princess is a normal person just like everyone else and that's what he likes about her...that she wants to be a normal person for a day and Samurai has definitely given her that opportunity that night.

* * *

Could it be...that Samurai already has feelings for her? Who knows? We'll see!


	15. Second Encounter

And Samurai meets Zia-Lin again! Wonder what else is happening there?

* * *

Chapter 15: Second Encounter

By the next day, Samurai was still thinking about the first date he had with Princess Zia-Lin and as he woke up from his sleep, he was looking at the ceiling and thought about last night a lot and it was the very first time that he had see a princess be her true self...and he's hoping that he gets to know her well and see what she's really like on her off days and hopes to see there's life outside those palace walls that have been sheltered for long.

But he couldn't quite imagine how beautiful she looked when she's wearing a vest and pants instead of a traditional princess attire and it's like she wants to be accepted for who she is instead of just a princess and Samurai could completely respect that and he's hoping that he'll be able to get that chance. All in all, from his perspective, it was the best date he's ever had. Samurai is usually a little shy around girls and somewhat of a geek of some sorts and for one night...one girl completely accepted him for who he is instead of rejecting him.

Samurai sat up on his bed, reaches in his nightstand, takes out his japanese hokkaido headband and puts it on his head for a while and takes out his actual samurai sword and started to practicing a few samurai moves and he's getting most of the hang of it. His secret occupation would become a samurai enthusiast...not a samurai warrior, but to be able to teach people the way of the samurai.

He definitely felt more Japanese than anything and he's gotten a couple of samurai sword and swagger from his cousin, Musaki and incorporated a whole lot of movements and Samurai'ed up another notch and then some.

"Hey, Samurai!"

Just then, his session was interrupted by Phoenix and he stopped what he was doing, opened the door and he said, "Yeah?"

Phoenix looked at the headband Samurai was wearing and asked, "Practicing samurai moves again?"

"Yeah, what of it?" asked Samurai, raising his eyebrow.

"Nothing. I just think it's awesome that you've got it down pat. I've been meaning to ask you...did you and the princess lip-lock?" asked Phoenix, smirking.

Samurai rolled his eyes at that question and he asked, "Don't you have anything else better to do other than ask me about my date?"

"Did you?" asked Phoenix.

"No, we did not lip-lock. No one kisses on the first date, you know." Samurai added.

"Phoenix...leave Samurai alone. He has to get ready for work." Mako said, looking at Phoenix in a stern look.

"Actually, I got a few days off from work. Okami's taking parts of my shifts." Samurai replied.

Later that day, Samurai decided to take another walk around the village and he was taking full advantage of having his days off from work and maybe he can take a visit at the Jade Palace for a while, but as he was gonna do that...he noticed someone walking into a couple of fruit stands and wanted to see who that was because the tiger tail gave it away.

Soon enough, he instantly recognized that little tiara on the back that confirms that it's Zia-Lin and as soon as her back's turned around, she saw Samurai standing there and she was both shocked and a little bit nervous at the same time and she giggled nervously and said, "Samurai. Fancy meeting you here."

"Hey, Zia-Lin. I've been wanting to see you." Samurai replied.

"Well...here I am." Zia-Lin said.

Samurai nodded his head in agreement and fidgeted his fingers a little bit and Zia-Lin could sense that he's a little nervous and asked, "You okay?"

"Yeah. I'm still trying to get used to talking to girls." Samurai responded.

"Samurai, are you shy around girls?" asked Zia-Lin.

Samurai didn't want to come off as stupid when he admitted that certain answer and he said, "Don't laugh at me, but...I'm really shy around girls. I kinda lack a little bit of confidence."

"Do you?" asked Zia-Lin.

"Yeah. I know it sounds kinda dumb." Samurai said, blushing a little.

"I'm kinda the same way...with boys. My father always thinks the humble are just peasants that don't deserve to be in our prescence because they're considered second-rate. It's just how he thinks." Zia-Lin replied.

"What's wrong with humble people?" asked Samurai.

"Nothing. They're really nice, sweet, kind and they look up to you. But try telling that to my father. He's too stuck on his own ways." Zia-Lin responded.

Samurai couldn't imagine having that kind of attitude towards those who are less royalty and Zia-Lin asked, "Why aren't you at the noodle shop?"

"A got a few days off." Samurai replied.

"Oh...I just needed a little break from my princess duties and to just get away from everything." Zia-Lin replied.

"I see." Samurai added.

"Do you know a quiet place to just look at the sky?" asked Zia-Lin.

"There's a bamboo forest that's outside the Valley of Peace, but it's not that far. Just about a few minutes. But...I'm not sure if your dad is okay with that." Samurai added.

"My dad's having one of those boring gatherings with all the royals from different countries. It always takes 5 hours." Zia-Lin added.

"That's a very long meeting." Samurai added.

"You don't know the half of it." Zia-Lin replied.

Samurai was hoping that he might bring her back to the Jade Palace before her dad looks for her and he said, "All right. I'll take you there."

"Thanks, Samurai." Zia-Lin said, smiling.

Samurai smiled at her for a second and he said, "If it's okay, you can just call me Sam."

* * *

Second meeting again! Looks like Samurai's still showing some shyness towards girls. That's pretty cute. Stay tuned for more!


	16. Instant Connection

Of course, Samurai and Zia-Lin take a little walk outside the Valley and we reveal Samurai's amazing talents...interest in martial arts.

* * *

Chapter 16: Instant Connection

They finally made it to the bamboo forest and they were just sitting there, looking the beautiful view of the village and every inch of the Valley of Peace and a little sighting of the Jade Palace and they took it all in and they were talking with each other and Samurai shared a few things about himself from being shy and to become a little bit of a samurai enthusiast and most of the things Samurai said made Zia-Lin giggled and get interested with a lot more and as she was listening in, she could feel a small connection with Samurai because he's really down-to-earth, friendly and really honest.

"...so that's how I decided to become more into samurai swords. Not for warrior purposes, but to really get into the whole feeling of samurai fighting, kendo and things like that. I think maybe that's why my dad named me Samurai. Sounds weird, I know." Samurai said.

"No, no, no. I think it's wonderful that you're so passionate about what you do. Like...you have this amazing quality of doing what you love and being able to take that into consideration is just so awesome." Zia-Lin added.

"Yeah, I've been practicing kendo, samurai fighting and ninjitsu for a few years now and I've won pretty much every tournament around here. But...even with my accomplishments, I can't really show it off to everyone because I don't want everyone to think I'm better than the other person. I'm not really better than everyone else." Samurai added.

"Why wouldn't you want to show your accomplishments?" asked Zia-Lin.

"It's really nothing major. I just do what I like to do without making a big deal out of it. You know, I participate in those things, win some or lose some and life goes on." Samurai answered.

Zia-Lin could understand what Samurai just elaborated on that because she made some accomplishments on her own, but always just had been in the shadow of her father being the next in line for royal and to get married when she reaches 20 or 21 without a certain courtship. Samurai cleared his throat and asked, "So...what about you?"

"Me?" asked Zia-Lin.

"Yeah, what are you like?" asked Samurai.

No one's ever asked her that question before and of course it came as a big surprise from her and she replied, "Well...I think being a princess, you always get the royal treatment a lot and everyone always wants to focus on you and you can get pampered. But it's also a big responsibility. It's nice and everything...but even though I always get what I always wanted, it never made me feel happy."

Samurai widened his eyes in surprise after hearing this and asked, "Really?"

"Yeah. I can't stand wearing a freaking dress all day or have people fight for my protection. I can take good care of myself, you know." Zia-Lin added.

"You serious?" asked Samurai.

"Yeah. My father doesn't know this, but I've been doing some kung-fu lessons for a few years now." Zia-Lin added.

And that made Samurai completely shocked that Zia-Lin's doing some kung-fu and he said, "Seriously?"

"Yep. I'm just waiting for the right time until someone tries to take me down and I'll have to use what I taught to defend myself." Zia-Lin answered.

"That's so cool." Samurai added.

"Yeah. Sam, can I ask you something?" asked Zia-Lin.

Samurai nodded his head and is willing to listen to what she had to say and said, "I'm listening."

"Have you ever felt like you wanted to be normal for a day? Like you just want to be free to be who you are?" asked Zia-Lin.

"Why imagine? I always live my life that way." Samurai added.

"Well...it's just that when you're a princess, everything's always been done for you. Cooking, cleaning, drive you around, brush your teeth, paint your nails, dress and things like that." Zia-Lin answered.

"Really? You don't do those things yourself?" asked Samurai.

"No. Being independent is pretty much a no-no in the royals world. I don't really get a chance to make my own decisions because someone always makes it for me. Honestly, I get really sick of it and I just wish that...for one day, I want to be treated as normal. Just like everyone else." Zia-Lin said.

Samurai could tell that despite all the amazing things about living in a royal world, there's always a desire on what it's like to be a normal person and he asked, "So in other words...you wanted to be treated the way other people outside of royalty treats you?"

"Yeah. It's really hard to have a normal life. Sometimes I look around everyone and they're living their lives as normal and I just wish for one day...just one day that I can see what it's like to be around normal people. Not as a princess or the king's daughter. Just plain old Zia-Lin." Zia-Lin added.

Samurai could see that in her and in some cases, he sees her for who she is and that's exactly what he likes about her and he said, "Well...I actually like this side of you already."

That surprised Zia-Lin the most and she turned around and faced Samurai and asked, "You do?"

"Yeah, I really like you for you. Put aside the materials and all the things that come with being a royal and just focus on the person on the inside. To me, you're as real as it gets and even though people have a view of what you're like, no one takes the time to see you for who you really are. And I think who you are...is beautiful in every which way possible." Samurai answered.

After hearing what Samurai just said, she immediately smiled at this and she said, "You're such a sweet person. I don't know why my father thinks that peasants are no good."

"We're all normal people just like everyone else." Samurai added.

Both of them looked at each other in the eyes and all of a sudden, they got a little closer and kissed each other in the lips and after a split second, they realized what they just did and Samurai chuckled softly and asked, "Okay...did that just happen?"

Zia-Lin blushed in response to that and said, "Yeah, it did."

Both of them chuckled nervously in response to that kiss and Samurai asked, "You wanna try it again?"

"Sure." Zia-Lin replied.

Before long, both Samurai and Zia-Lin kissed each other on the lips again and they could feel the sparks beginning to fly between the two of them and in that moment, Zia-Lin felt something in her heart that made her realize that this one peasant might be just the one for her. No royal bloodline, no fancy kingdom...just someone who's a real person.

They were unaware that a certain person named Macao was looking over and saw Zia-Lin kissing Samurai in the lips and he felt a surge of anger and jealousy coming in him because he felt like having a peasant as a boyfriend didn't look right and he was gonna have revenge and the target he's going after is Samurai.

'You just wait, peasant. If it's the last thing I do, I'm coming after you.' Macao thought.

* * *

Samurai and Zia-Lin just had a moment! And then...Macao comes in with a spiteful of jealousy. Something is not right in the land of Oz...Macao's seeking revenge against Samurai. We'll see how this plays out soon!


	17. Keeping in Perspective

And you can tell that the relationship is starting to cement when Samurai offers Zia-Lin some comforting advice.

* * *

Chapter 17: Keeping in Perspective

Later that day, Samurai and Zia-Lin headed back to the palace and as they were walking, she started harboring a little bit of feelings for Samurai and she may have found the one person that she wants to spend the rest of her life with, but not too early or too soon. She said to him, "Thanks again for the most wonderful date last night."

"You're welcome, Zia-Lin." Samurai replied.

Zia-Lin giggled at this and she said, "If you don't mind, can you call me Zia?"

Samurai didn't mind at all and he smiled in response to that and said, "No problem, Zia."

With that, they walked up the steps to the palace and Zia told him, "Samurai, I just want to see where this takes us."

"Where what takes us?" asked Samurai.

"Between you and me. I know we've just dated and all, but I hope that things can start slowly until we get to a full relationship. The reason...my dad wants me to get married so I can be provided for and taken care of." Zia responded.

"Well, what's the problem with that?" asked Samurai.

"Nothing...except for the fact that he wants me to get married when I'm 20 or 21. I'm still a little young and got some growing up to do." Zia answered.

"20's too early." Samurai added.

"I know it's too early, but that's what the royal law says. A princess has to be married by the time she reaches either her 20th or 21'st birthday. Whoever made that stupid law must have been out of his mind to stop their daughters from being young." Zia answered.

"Well, I'm 21 and I'm not married." Samurai added.

"That's true. I do want to find love, but I have to wait for the right time until I find the one and let the relationship grow from there. It just takes a long time for it to come in and my father is not exactly the waiting kind." Zia answered.

"Why don't you just tell him that you want to wait it out until you're ready?" asked Samurai.

"I would, but it would make him think that I'm not worthy of being queen and he'd cut me out of the family and that I would be disowned." Zia answered.

That surprised Samurai the most because if she was gonna wait it out, she was gonna risk being disowned by her own father and what he got was a princess that was afraid to tell her father what she wanted to do, so she has to live under the pressure and the burdens of pleasing others and he said, "That's awful."

"I know. I just don't know what to do." Zia replied, sadly.

"Hey...I'm here for you for whatever you need. If you wanna find me, just come to either my house or at the noodle shop...on my breaks." Samurai added.

Zia could definitely feel like she can talk to Samurai about everything and anything and also someone who's willing to listen to anything that's on her mind and also to rely on and she said, "Thank you, Samurai."

"You'e welcome. Guess I'll see you later." Samurai said.

"Thanks again." Zia said, with a smile.

With that, Samurai leaves the palace steps without another word and as Zia watched Samurai go, she can tell there's no other person that really makes her happy and loyal to other than Samurai and she lets out a deep sigh and said to herself, "I wish my father would accept Samurai."

"Don't hold your breath, Zia-Lin."

Suddenly, she turned around and found herself confronted by Macao and from the looks of it, Macao looked completely furious at Zia-Lin and she said, "Macao? What are you doing here?"

"I know what's been going on here." Macao said, with a growl.

* * *

What's Macao doing here? Stay tuned to find out!


	18. Confronted by Macao

And we get to see Macao...in a dark side. You might think who's the antagonist in this story? Does this chapter answer your question?

* * *

Chapter 18: Confronted by Macao

Zia-Lin couldn't tell what was going on and what's Macao's problem anyway and she asked, "What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb with me! I saw you kissing that...peasant!" Macao spat out.

Zia-Lin was immediately shocked and alarmed that Macao actually saw her kissing Samurai and she didn't know what to say about that other than the fact that she admitted that it did happen and that caused Macao to grow increasingly angry and he asked, "What the hell? Are you that stupid?! You're supposed to be with me!"

"Look, Macao. I really don't have time for this." Zia-Lin replied, starting to walk away, but got pinned to the wall by Macao.

"Yes, you do! Now you listen to me and you listen good! You're my queen! And I will DAMNED if I ever see you with that filthy peasant!" Macao shouted.

"Get your paws off of me!" Zia-Lin shouted, shoving him off.

Macao growled at her for this and he got the brass knuckles to prove it and he said, "You're gonna be happy with me and only me! Nobody else, you hear me?!"

"I've turned you down so many times in the past and this is no different. There's nothing in our future together and there never will be." Zia-Lin replied.

Macao took that as a joke and he said, "Who do you think I am? I'm the future ruler of our kingdom and if I have to...I will rule your father's throne and you can only bow to me! I'm your future superior!"

"Not in my book. And so what if I'm dating a peasant? At least he's a gentleman." Zia-Lin stated.

"You just remember this...if you ever get close to him, you'll receive the full penalty. You have been warned." Macao replied, with a growl.

Zia-Lin felt like she was being threatened by Macao and she couldn't imagine the fear he brought her in and Macao stated, "Tell anyone else about what just happened...and you're gonna get it."

And with that, Macao walked back in the palace, slamming the doors hard, leaving Zia-Lin a little shaken about what just happened here and she was unaware that some of the royal servants had just witnessed what happened before their eyes that someone like Macao could threaten Zia-Lin like that.

"Maybe she is better off with that peasant." one servant said.

"Should we alert the king?" asked another servant.

"I think it's best that the king has to find out the truth for himself...even though he can be a real hard head." a third servant replied.

* * *

He deserves a beatdown! But we'll get into that later. Stay tuned!

**Voice of the servants: Carlos Alazraqui, Bradley Cooper, Keith David**


	19. Macao's Plot

Now we shift focus on Macao and it turns out there's more to him than we've seen earlier.

* * *

Chapter 19: Macao's Plot

After confronting Zia-Lin at the palace, Macao completely wanted to gain vengance against Samurai for stealing Zia-Lin away from him and after that kiss he had witnessed, he wanted to do everything in his power to hurt Samurai really bad and because Zia-Lin's dating a peasant of her choice, he might make a lot of stops to put an end to this relationship that might form.

Macao was completely consumed by anger, fury, envy and hatred for Samurai and he's completely obsessed with Zia-Lin and couldn't imagine his life without her and in his mind...a peasant that's coming in would destroy any chances of them being together and he could not stand it any second and he said, "I've gotta put an end to Samurai because she starts falling for him. The only question is how will that be possible?"

"Sire?"

Macao turns around for a while and sees one of his personal servants coming in the room and he said, "Xun, come in. I want to talk to you."

Xun comes in there and he asked, "Yes, sir?"

"I want you to do me a little favor." Macao replied.

"What is it, Macao?" asked Xun.

Macao had this huge evil smirk on his face and he said, "I want you to gather your crew and if you see Zia-Lin going out with this peasant, follow them and see what they're doing. And if anything, I want you to take down Samurai and make sure that Zia-Lin dates no one else but me."

Xun was a little surprised to hear this and he said, "Samurai?"

"That peasant. I want to make Zia-Lin mine no matter what happens. Do whatever the hell you want with that wretched peasant and make him suffer. But don't bring any harm to the princess. That's gonna be my job." Macao said, finishing that last sentence with a growl.

"What are you gonna do with the princess?" asked Xun.

"If she rejects me...she will suffer the consequences of that decision she made." Macao replied, pulling out his triple-blade sword.

The sight of that alarmed Xun to an extent and he realized what his intentions were for that suggestion and he asked, "You're gonna kill Zia-Lin?"

"If that's what it takes for her to be my queen." Macao replied.

"Sire, killing the king's daughter? All because you want her to yourself?" asked Xun, a little disturbed.

"Yes! What parts did you not get? When I get through with her and Samurai, I'll overthrow her father's throne as king so I can take over his place at the palace and rule the kingdom." Macao responded.

Xun didn't know what else to say, but he knows deep inside that this is wrong. But even if he tells Macao about that, he'll risk getting cut off by his master and he reluctantly said, "If you say so...it'll be done."

"Good. Make sure that it happens." Macao replied.

Xun did as he said as soon as he left the room, leaving Macao alone to fend for his plan and that he will do everything in his power to make Zia-Lin his and get Samurai out of the way and he lets out a sinister chuckle and said, "Zia-Lin...you will be mine and that peasant will be out of your life...after I take away his."

Macao was totally unaware that Po and Monkey overheard this plot and they had a sick feeling that Macao's gonna really kill Samurai and have the princess to herself and Po said, "I can't believe this."

"I know. Macao's gonna kill Samurai, take control over the princess and get the king out of the way for his own personal power." Monkey said, completely stunned and disturbed.

"No, I shared my favorite bowl of noodles with that guy!" Po exclaimed.

Monkey glared at Po for a second with that logic he just made and he replied, "Really, Po?"

"Don't judge." Po replied.

"We have got to warn the princess and Samurai." Monkey said.

* * *

Sounds like we got a royal villain on our hands! Stay tuned to see more!

**Voices of Macao's servants: Kevin Michael Richardson, Jeff Bennett, Keith David, Bill Fagerbakke**

**Voice of Po: Mick Wingert**

**Voice of Monkey: James Sie**

**Voice of Xun: Steven Blum**


	20. Thinking About Samurai

Then...Zia-Lin's thoughts about Samurai completely opened up her heart to know that she found the one...the same peasant she picked to be his date has officially cemented the relationship.

* * *

Chapter 20: Thinking About Samurai

Back in her room, Zia-Lin couldn't shake off being threatened by Macao earlier today, but she knows that it's very typical Macao...always wanting to do whatever he can to make her mine and she's had to live with his obsessive behavior for so many years, but with this one...she didn't really think he meant it until he showed her his sword and she was not only in fear for her own safety, but also for Samurai's own life as well.

She walked over to her room and took some time for herself to think things over and she sat down on her bed and looked at the ceiling throughout that time and just shook off whatever just happened between her and Macao and she knew that she would be way better off without him in her life and although it's unclear about what she should do about it, the only thing she has to realize that someone had already made room in her heart and being treated like she's supposed to be treated...like a normal person and sees her as who she is instead of the royal special treatment.

And that someone was Samurai...he brought a lot of happiness and comfort into her life and showed her what life is really life while she was stuck in the same royal rut that she had dealt with. His down-to-earth, easy-going demeanor, awkward shyness and just a wonderful wisdom personality and friendly persona really melted her heart and it felt like she had already found the one she was yearning for...despite the fact that Samurai's a peasant.

But Zia-Lin doesn't see a peasant in Samurai, but just a real person who treats her with kindness and that he's very humble. She never found guys like him in her kingdom and in her heart, she knows that she had found the one for her.

The fact that Macao's making a big deal about this and let it get to this point really bothered her and she wants to turn to the one person she can trust.

"Samurai..." Zia-Lin whispered.

The one name fills her heart with so much warmth and she sighed softly as she grabs a pillow and hugs it tightly and said to herself, "Even if my father says that me dating a peasant like you will be the biggest mistake I'll ever make, I really wouldn't care at all...because at least I can I say to myself that you're the best mistake I've ever made. I'll be saving my love for you."

* * *

The last lines from what Zia-Lin just said were inspired by Ariana Grande's song 'Best Mistake'. If you haven't heard it, please do so! Stay tuned for more!


	21. Increasing Jealousy

And Macao showcases a huge amount of envy, pride, greed and a little bit of ego in him when seeing Samurai with Zia-Lin. Confrontation scene commences!

* * *

Chapter 21: Increasing Jealousy

As the next day went by, Samurai thought it would be best to give Zia-Lin a little gift for her and give her some flowers and he made his way towards the Jade Palace to deliver this to the princess and as he was going up the steps, he was unaware that a certain jealous Macao was watching as Samurai is holding a bouquet of flowers for Zia-Lin and he growled in deep anger and bitterness that this peasant would do this for the princess.

"Unbelievable." Macao growled.

Samurai was seen by a few royal servants and they noticed a huge amount of flowers he's carrying and one of them said, "Hello, Samurai."

"Hi there. This is for Zia." Samurai replied, presenting the flowers.

"Wonderful. Zia-Lin's busy with her father, but if you'll just leave them with me, I'll make sure that she gets it." the servant replied.

Samurai nodded his head in understanding and he said, "I appreciate that. Thank you."

"Anytime." the servant replied.

Soon after, Samurai walked down the steps from the palace to head home all while he was being watched by Macao and he was completely unaware that Macao was following him and as he made his way out of the palace, he heard Macao call his name out.

"Peasant!"

Samurai stopped for a second and then turned around and sees Macao standing there and he said, "Oh, it's you. What's up?"

"I'll tell you what's up...you stealing my future queen! That's what's up!" Macao shouted.

Samurai was confused on what Macao meant by this and he figured that Zia-Lin was involved in this and he said, "I haven't stolen your future queen, dude."

"Yes, you have! You think Zia-Lin can have you and get away with it?!" Macao shouted, freaking out.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa...time out. What are you talking about?" asked Samurai.

"Shut up! I saw you kiss MY girlfriend! My future bride! My future queen! Don't you DARE play dumb with me! I'm not born stupid, you know!" Macao roared.

Samurai then realized that Macao was talking about him and Zia-Lin together and the thought of a peasant dating a princess made him sick to his stomach and Samurai replied, "What's the big deal anyway?"

"The big deal...she's my mate! You're just a lowly peasant who works in a lowly noodle shop and you don't deserve to be with a high-society beautiful girl like Zia-Lin! She deserves someone better and I'm that person! And I'd like you to keep it that way." Macao stated.

Samurai wasn't gonna fight him on this and he stated in a calm voice, "Listen to me, I'm not stealing Zia-Lin at all. She made her choice already."

"Well...I'm gonna make her regret that choice. Take this as a warning; get anywhere near her and it will be the last thing you'll ever do." Macao replied, showing his sword.

Samurai widened his eyes at what he actually meant by this and he said, "You're not thinking..."

"Believe this, peasant. We'll see who's standing when my sword meets your back. Stay away from my girl." Macao growled.

After Macao walked away, Samurai was still confused as to what just happened there and he scoffed at this and he suddenly saw Zia-Lin walk down the steps, obviously looking very upset with Macao and she saw Samurai standing there...in which Macao turned around and his jealousy level has gone up.

"Hey, Sam. I'm sorry you had to experience what just happened." Zia-Lin said.

"It's fine. Is he always like this?" asked Samurai.

Zia-Lin groans in exasperation and she replied, "He's been totally obssessed with me since we were kids and how one day, we'll be happy together. He's totally out of my league and he thinks that I deserve to be his 'queen'. I'd rather have a peasant as my real boyfriend that Macao or any other royal."

Macao couldn't bear to watch and the first thing he wanted to do was kill Samurai for that and he immediately went over to both of them and attacked Samurai and punched him in the face multiple times. Samurai got himself up and looked at Macao and asked, "Dude, what's wrong with you?!"

"I just gave you a warning and yet, you defy me?! Zia-Lin is MINE!" Macao roared.

"I'll never be your queen! I made the choice to date Samurai. At least he's very humble, polite, sweet and always respectful." Zia-Lin answered.

"What does he have that I don't have?! He's just a peasant! You deserve someone better!" Macao exclaimed.

"News flash; I already got someone better! You can't do anything about it!" Zia-Lin shouted back.

"What's all the ruckus down here?"

All three of them turned around to see the king come down the steps and the first person the king looked at was Samurai, assuming that he started something and he asked, "What did you do to my daughter, peasant?"

"Nothing, sir." Samurai replied.

"I saw them kissing yesterday!" Macao shouted.

The king looked at Samurai for a second and he asked, "Is that true?"

"Yes, sir. It's true." Samurai answered.

"Yes, dad. We did kiss yesterday." Zia-Lin responded.

The king started snarling a little, thinking that Samurai might've done more than kiss and he asked, "Did you do something to her that she regretted?"

"No, sir. Not at all." Samurai answered, in a very truthful tone.

"All we did was kiss and that's it. Nothing else, I swear." Zia-Lin added.

The king could tell from the times Samurai said 'yes, sir' and 'no, sir' to him tells that he's very polite and honest and he said, "All right then."

Macao was shocked to hear this and he asked, "Are you gonna allow them to keep dating?!"

"If he didn't do anything wrong to my daughter, I don't see any reason to stop them." the king replied, although initially reluctant to admit it.

That was the last straw for Macao as he stormed out of the palace to get some air and Samurai blinked his eyes and said, "I pity the doofus who ends up with him."

Zia-Lin replied with a giggle and she said, "Some desperate girl, I'm sure."

* * *

This is not the last you'll see of Macao soon! Stay tuned!


	22. Macao's Evil Plan

Now Macao's plot goes from evil to diabolical...and the king is gonna be in the middle.

* * *

Chapter 22: Macao's Evil Plot

Macao had already reached his limit with the fact that the king is letting them date when he knows that he should end up with Zia-Lin and everything has been festering up his mind and knew that the only way to end this was to end Samurai's life and bring him ultimate pain and suffering and he was gonna do whatever he can to destroy the relationship.

Xun comes in the room with several of Macao's personal army and Xun asked, "Sire, do you really think you can go through with this?"

"Of course I wanna go through with this! Zia-Lin is my queen and I won't let this peasant destroy my chances with her! If I can't have Zia, nobody will!" Macao shouted.

"So...what do you want us to do with him?" asked one army member.

"I want him to suffer the consequences for this. Bring in any weapons you got and we will put an end to this peasant before he runs with my queen!" Macao answered.

Before long, the army showed Macao the number of weapons they can use to take down Samurai and Xun asked, "What if the king finds out?"

"You handle the king. If he does stop us, kill him too." Macao answered.

The fact that Xun's being assigned to kill the king is a huge extreme and that's the one task he's completely reluctant to do and he said, "With all due respect, your highness...I was not trained to kill the king or the innocent."

"But you are trained to follow orders. Need I remind you?!" Macao demanded.

Xun said nothing throughout the whole plan, but he knew deep inside that this was wrong and that he would never take part in this whole plan. All of them were totally unaware that Zia-Lin actually overheard this whole detail and she was shocked to hear that Macao's actually gonna kill Samurai and some of Zia's personal servants heard it as well.

Zia couldn't believe how far Macao was willing to go to keep Samurai from her and even throwing her father into the mix and she said, "I gotta warn Samurai."

* * *

How will Samurai take the warning? Stay tuned!


	23. Warning Samurai and Family

Of course the relationship between Zia-Lin and Samurai is completely official the moment she warns him and his family. Let's see what happens!

* * *

Chapter 23: Warning Samurai and Family

Zia-Lin wasted no time to warn Samurai and she immediately ran off to his house to let him know about Macao's plan to kill Samurai and suddenly, she noticed someone following her and she assumed that it might been Macao watching her every move, but she was ready to fight him back and she unveiled her best kendo/kung-fu pose in case she's ready to attack and soon enough, he sees another one of Macao's servants; Xun.

"Princess Zia-Lin!" Xun panted, as he ran towards her.

Zia-Lin immediately went over to Xun and she grabbed him by the wrist, flipped him three times and pins her foot towards his stomach and she growled furiously and asked, "What are you doing here?"

"Upon great tidings, princess...I have come here to warn you. Macao's devised a plan to kill Samurai so he can have you all to himself! Just so that he can take over your father's kingdom and have you as his queen!" Xun exclaimed.

"I already know what Macao was up to!" Zia-Lin shouted.

Xun was completely shocked to find that Zia-Lin figured that out on her own and he asked, "How did you...?"

"I overheard Macao's plans earlier today and I'm gonna put an end to it! Samurai means everything to me and I love him!" Zia-Lin shouted.

Xun was a little blown away by what Zia-Lin just said and realized that she professed her love for Samurai and that surprised him to no limit and he asked, "You love Samurai?"

"More than anything else in the world. I can't imagine my life without him." Zia-Lin added.

"I know that you love Samurai, but a peasant?" asked Xun.

"I don't care. I don't care if my father rejects him or even banishes me from seeing him. I love him and that's all there is to it. I'd rather have a peasant boyfriend than a royal schmuck to be my husband and a future king." Zia-Lin added.

Xun was speechless as to how she puts it in perspective, but she made that perfectly clear that she has feelings for Samurai and that was never gonna stop her and he said, "Very well then. I'm was gonna warn him and you."

"No funny stuff." Zia-Lin growled.

Sooner or later, Zia-Lin knocked on the door, anxiously waiting for Samurai to answer and once she stepped back, she saw the door open and saw Musaki answering it and he asked, "Princess Zia-Lin? What are you doing here?"

"Where's Samurai?" asked Zia-Lin.

"He's upstairs. What's going on?" asked Musaki.

"Samurai is gonna be in terrible danger." Xun answered.

Once Musaki heard that, he could tell that something serious is happening and trouble was gonna loom in very quickly and he said, "I'll get him for you."

5 minutes later...

"He's gonna do what?!" all the family asked.

"Macao won't stop at nothing until he gets Zia-Lin and make him be his queen to his king and that he's determined to kill Samurai if he sees her with him, thinking that a peasant like Samurai will never be in love with a princess." Xun explained.

"Why would he get in the middle of this?" asked Mako.

"Just so that he can have the princess and rule her father's kingdom." Xun answered.

"If he thinks he's gonna murder my son for this, he's got another thing coming!" Mako exclaimed, pounding his fist on the table.

Samurai was completely shocked to hear that, but he knows that this isn't gonna be a battle of wills or who gets who's heart and he said, "You did the right thing by coming here."

Zia-Lin sighed heavily and she said, "I just don't want you to get hurt."

"Don't worry, all right? That guy won't do anything to stop me." Samurai added.

"There's no time to waste. We have to get Zia-Lin and Samurai out of the valley before Macao finds them." Xun added.

"Excuse me...who says we're gonna run away? We stand up and fight back. We don't care if he's the stinking dali llama of India!" Musaki exclaimed.

Everyone turned to Musaki after uttering what he had just said and Logan said, "That doesn't even make a bit of sense."

"Well, whatever. We're gonna fight Macao back." Musaki stated.

"Macao is all too powerful and he'll destroy you all in a single blow." Xun warned.

"Not if we got a full amount of dragons to stand in his way." Mako stated.

* * *

Get ready for an action sequence coming in!


	24. Feelings Revealed

And this is where things go from serious to romantic between Zia-Lin and Samurai. You'll see why.

* * *

Chapter 24: Feelings Revealed

While the family gathers a plan to take down Macao, Samurai takes Zia-Lin to his room for some solace and peace and while they were there, Zia-Lin lays close to Samurai's chest and she started purring softly and she felt safe in his arms and Zia-Lin said to him, "Samurai, I can't tell you how scared I was when I heard that Macao was gonna kill you. I had to come over and warn you."

"Like I said, you did the right thing coming here. This guy doesn't even deserve to be the king anyway. What would possess him to do something stupid like that?" asked Samurai.

"He's always been obsessed with me since we were kids and said that I'm gonna be his queen someday and I didn't really give him the time of day and he's got no chance with me. That never stops him and he'll never leave me alone until he gets what he wants." Zia-Lin answered.

"Any guy that would do that is not really worth your time." Samurai answered.

"Yeah. But there is one guy I would spend eternity with...even if I walked away from being a princess." Zia-Lin responded.

"Who?" asked Samurai.

Zia-Lin looked at him deep in the eyes and it was perfectly clear that the person she's referring is Samurai and that served a huge amount of surprise for Samurai himself as he realized that she's talking about him and asked, "Me?"

"Yes, you. I know my father thinks you're a peasant and that I could do better than that, but I don't really care. You're not like any other guy and I know you're not the royal type, but just being you really made me see that there are other people like this." Zia-Lin added.

"Zia-Lin..." Samurai said, breathless.

"I love you, Samurai." Zia-Lin added.

Samurai blinked his eyes a few times before looking deeply into Zia's eyes and he felt the same way as well and he whispered, "I love you too."

"Sam...I can't imagine my life without you and you're everything to me. I love you...for you. And that's what I love about you. You made me see the real me outside those sheltered palace walls and set me free from what I've been accustomed to." Zia-Lin replied.

Samurai smiled at her for that and he said, "I'm happy to hear that."

Before long, they came close to each other and kissed each other in the lips very tenderly and wrapped their arms around each other as they kept on kissing each other and in a few seconds, it went from sweet and tender to rough and passionate within that period with their tongues wrapping around each other and deeper than that way and that really exudes their love for each other and something like that could never be taken away from them.

After the kiss, Zia-Lin rested her head on Samurai's chest and she can hear his heartbeat and she said, "Please stay with me, Sam."

"I'll protect you, Zia...I promise." Samurai whispered.

Zia placed her paw on Samurai's and both of them held each other's paws very tightly as a means that they won't let anything or anyone tear this relationship apart and Samurai will do anything to protect her from Macao...no matter what the cost would be.

* * *

Sweet intimate moment before the action scenes. Stay tuned for more!


	25. Treacherous Territory

And the evilness of Macao is fully seen when he goes after the king.

* * *

Chapter 25: Treacherous Territory

Before long, Macao was gearing up to plan revenge on Samurai along with his backup team and assembled every ounce of weapons of any kind in order for Macao to deal with not only Samurai and Zia-Lin, but also the king as well and he knows just the plan to do so. As the crew works on formulating the plan together, Macao walks over to the king and saw him approach the halls and with an evil smirk, he had the perfect alibi for the trap.

"Your highness! It's so good to see you!" Macao said, supposedly frantic.

"What's the meaning of this?!" the king asked.

"Zia-Lin...you have to find her! I think her and that peasant are being held against their will! You gotta get them now!" Macao exclaimed.

The king was definitely on high alert and in deep concern for his daughter, assuming that the peasant might've had something to do with this and he said, "We've got no time to waste! Let's go get them!"

Both of them ran off towards the hallways and as they headed towards the stairs, Macao led them to this one cell that there's a chance they might be in there and he pointed to the king where they're held at and once the king entered in there, Macao closed the door right behind him and locking him up...in which the king was shocked to discover.

"What? Macao, what's going on?" the king asked, hearing the door locked.

"Sorry, your highness. But this is between me and your daughter." Macao replied, hiding the key.

Then the king realized something...Macao set him up to get him out of the way so he can get to his daughter all to himself and the king replied, "Let me out this instant!"

"Not gonna happen. I'll be back for you...so I can take your crown." Macao added.

Soon enough, Macao snapped his fingers and brought in his army guards to keep the king prisoner in the cell until he gets back to get him and the king growled at Macao and said, "You won't get away with this! You're no match for my daughter!"

"Oh...I believe I have and I am." Macao said, with a smirk.

* * *

Twisty! Stay tuned to see more coming up! And Merry Christmas!


	26. Assembling a Plan

Action plans always start out as a plan!

* * *

Chapter 26: Assembling a Plan

Meanwhile, the Bushido-Akio clan brought in a plan to take down Macao's plot and Samurai's willing to fight for her, but not for personal gain...but for safety and keep her from harm whatsoever and he was practicing some of his kendo moves that he can use to fight Macao with. Zia-Lin was definitely mesmerized by Samurai's kendo movements and she figured that it might require a tag team effort and she showed a few kung-fu moves to Samurai and in response to that, both of them combined kendo and kung-fu together with a usage to take their opponent's advantage.

"If kendo and kung-fu had a baby, we'd be the babies." Samurai stated.

Zia-Lin giggled in response to that and she said, "And we'd be the best ones."

Just then, they recognized the Furious Five, Po and the Elemental Hazards coming in the Bushido-Akio house to lay down some plans on how to attack Macao and as Samurai was listening in, he threw out a few suggestions to confront Macao and his posse and to keep Zia-Lin safe from harm. Most of them were completely willing to listen to Samurai's suggestions and in comes Okami with a sword.

"I'll tell you what we're gonna do...I'm gonna attack this guy and then stick a sword straight to his royal balls." Okami replied.

Takami was completely shocked and a little embarrassed that his mother actually said 'balls' in front of him and he said, "Mom...I warned you about that word."

"I don't care, son. Samurai's like the panda son I never had in my life." Okami responded.

"Remind me to never mess with your mom." Kiba muttered.

The Bushido-Akio's kept a huge stash of weapons whenever someone attacks their family or a bigger threat is underway and soon enough, Mako was calling in all the dragons for their assistance and Max brought in his dragon friend Blaze to add to the masses for help.

Within those preparations, the family are ready to defend on of their own and the princess as well and Mako said, "Let this be known...Macao's gonna have to deal with all of us if he tries to kill our son."

"You bet." Musaki agreed.

* * *

Prepare for the action sequence! Happy new year!

**Voice of Takami: Ryan Potter**

**Voice of Kiba: Greg Cipes**


	27. Confronting Macao

Face-to-face time!

* * *

Chapter 27: Confronting Macao

Suddenly, the Bushido-Akio's received a message from two of Macao's armies as they came in the house and everyone saw them coming forth and one said, "We come in with a message from Macao...and it involves Samurai and Zia-Lin."

"Yeah...and he told us that he's gonna take down Samurai and Zia-Lin by force." another army member stated.

They brought in some swords, chains and shackles to imprison both of them in and the family is not gonna go down without a fight and Mako said, "You've got no chance at making that happen."

"Shut the hell up, old man. This ain't got nothing to do with you." the first army member replied.

Mako growls deeply in this and he immediately goes over to them and punches them straight to the face and jaw and throws them out of the house while going in there and kicking them straight in the groin and faces again and he said, "You tell Macao that he oughta leave my son alone!"

Meanwhile, Samurai and Zia-Lin were getting out of the house while Mako's taking care of the two army members and Samurai's top priority is to keep her safe from harm and from Macao and as they ran towards the village, Samurai kept an eye out if anyone attempts to stop them so they wouldn't be captured by Macao or his team.

"I think we're clear." Samurai whispered.

"You sure?" asked Zia-Lin.

"Positive." Samurai answered.

Within seconds, Samurai and Zia-Lin crept towards parts of the village while he held her paw to make sure that they're safe together and soon enough, they entered towards the Jade Palace steps and they were hoping that they wouldn't find themselves in Macao's shadow any moment, but Samurai was ready and able to take any surprises they can find themselves in. He's got some kendo weapons behind his back just in case.

"Sam...I really feel safe when I'm with you." Zia-Lin stated.

"Hey, don't worry about that. I'm just here to help you in any way. I'll do whatever I can to help you with anything." Samurai responded.

Soon enough, Samurai noticed something coming this way right behind him and he slowly pulled out his kendo weapon and immediately goes forward and grabbed someone on the palm and just flipped towards the steps and places his foot above someone's chest and pulls out his kendo weapon and when he turned around...

"Samurai! It's me!"

He realized that he attacked Tigress by accident and he immediately got off of her and said, "Sorry about that. I thought you were one of Macao's goons."

Tigress got herself up and brushed herself off and she looked at Samurai in the eye and said, "If you're gonna mistakenly attack someone, try either Po or Monkey."

"That was my bad, okay? Don't make it worse." Samurai added.

Tigress scoffed at this and Zia-Lin responded with a mere slap in the face and said, "How dare you scoff at Samurai like that?!"

"Did you just slap me?" Tigress asked, shocked.

"I sure did." Zia-Lin responded.

Samurai cleared his throat to end this dispute before something else goes awry there and he said, "Excuse me...now's not the time for all this. We've got bigger issues here."

"Yeah, you're right. We can't risk ourselves getting caught by Macao." Zia-Lin added.

Tigress nodded in agreement and soon enough, they see the rest of the Five, the Bushido-Akio family, Po and the Elemental Hazards take charge in this as they walk up the steps of the palace to confront Macao while bringing their lackeys along being tied up and chained to and Samurai looked at them and he said, "Whoa..."

"Never mess with a former kendo/kung-fu champion." Mako said, chuckling.

"All right, dad!" Samurai exclaimed.

One of the two lackey's grunted in frustration and said, "Didn't know that this peasant actually knew kung-fu."

"And kendo. He did it real good." another lackey replied.

"How the hell did he manage to do that?" the first lackey asked.

Mako kicked them in the shin hard and replied, "You'll never find out."

Just then, they found themselves face to face with Macao and his allies standing right in front of him and once Macao saw Samurai with Zia-Lin, he just knew that he was gonna snap at any minute and he said, "Just when I thought you could take my warning seriously...now you're gonna pay."

* * *

Who knew that Mako could actually kick butt? Little secret thrown in. Stay tuned!

**Voices of the army members: Kevin Michael Richardson, Roger Craig Smith**

**Voice of Tigress: Kari Wahlgren**

**Voices of the lackeys: Jim Cummings, Scott Menville, Keith David**


	28. Won't Get Away With This

Another face-off with Macao! This is gonna be good!

* * *

Chapter 28: Won't Get Away With This

Zia-Lin growled at Macao for letting this go out of hand and she said to him, "Why are you doing this anyway?"

"Shut up! This is how you're gonna treat your future king...by dating a worthless peasant?!" asked Macao.

"Hey! Watch how you talk to my son!" Mako shouted.

Macao wnt over to Mako and he immediately punched him in the face and he said, "Your son is not good enough to date the princess! He's not even royal. He'll never be worth anything!"

"You're so wrong on so many levels." Zia-Lin argued.

Macao felt like it was the most offensive thing he's heard Zia-Lin say straight into his face and he turned around and asked, "What did you say?"

"I said you're wrong. I'll never be your queen and you certain cannot be my king! We have no future." Zia-Lin exclaimed.

Macao laughs proudly at that and he took that as a joke and said, "You made a funny."

Then, he went forward and punched her straight in the face and that did not sit well with Samurai as he pulled him away from her and said, "You have no right to lays your hands on a female!"

"Who are you to tell me what to do?!" Macao shouted.

"Listen, dude. I may not know royalty, but I know about how a girl should be treated; with dignity, respect, kindness and compassion. But mostly respect. I don't care how rich or royal you are...any guy that treats a girl like that nothing lower than freaking scum." Samurai answered.

"You dare talk to me like that?!" Macao shouted.

"If I done did it, I done dared it, dude." Samurai answered.

Macao growled in response to that and said, "I am not a dude! You will address me as King Macao!"

"You're not a king. You're a royal douchebag." Samurai responded.

Zia-Lin couldn't believe that Samurai actually stood up with Macao like that and that really shows that Samurai is a complete protector and that's the one thing she admires about him and Macao turned to Zia-Lin and asked, "Is this the kind of person you're gonna be with; a wretched peasant?"

Zia-Lin smacked him straight to the face and pinned him down with the use of her foot on his stomach and responded, "I'd rather be his wretched peasant than your queen."

All of the Bushido-Akio's, Jade Palace masters and Elemental Hazards stood there in shock as they heard what Zia-Lin just said and Max responded, "Bold!"

Soon enough, Zia-Lin comes to Samurai and they kissed each other on the lips and it definitely shows how much love they have for each other and Zia definitely followed her heart and found love with a peasant.

"I guess she found her own prince." Phoenix added.

Macao knew that this would be far from over as he got himself up and Zia-Lin said, "Now...where is my father?"

"Don't worry about him. He's fine...for now." Macao answered.

* * *

When Macao said 'for now', you know it's a sign that it's not good. Stay tuned for more!


	29. Deadly Secret

And Macao's awful secret or motivation is revealed! And Zia-Lin is proof she's not a typical princess.

* * *

Chapter 29: Deadly Secret

Zia-Lin didn't like what she just heard coming straight from Macao's mouth and something indicates that Macao has something to do with her father and asked, "What did you do to him?"

"What I've done to him, you ask? I placed him into a prison cell to keep him captive there until I come back to get him...and take over his crown once I'm done with him." Macao responded.

Zia-Lin was completely disturbed by what he meant by what he just said and didn't think that he would be actually capable of pulling something like this and Macao finished off saying, "By the time I'm done with this peasant...your father will have his final hours getting the crown and it'll belong to me and I'll rule the entire kingdom! Together, we will rule all and reign supreme!"

Zia-Lin went from disturbed to straight up mortified after hearing Macao's insidious plot to actually kill her father to take helm of the crown and to do that after killing Samurai and she knew that she will not let this happen and she said, "I will never be your queen! And you will never have my father's crown!"

"You can't do anything about it!" Macao spat out.

"Oh, no?" asked Zia-Lin.

"You're just the princess. Nothing more than a damsel in distress!" Macao exclaimed, with a smirk.

Zia-Lin knew that this was the straw that broke the camel's back when Macao reffered to her as a damsel in distress and she immediately lunged at him, punched him straight in the face, kicked him in the jaw and flipped him over several times while kicking him straight to the shin and slammed him through the the wall...in which all of Macao's posse looked on in shock to see that Zia-Lin actually took him down.

Much to the surprise of all of the king's servants as well as the Bushido-Akio family, the Jade Palace masters and the Elemental Hazards as they saw that she has a little bit of kung-fu in her and Samurai said, "Awesome..."

"Did she just...?" asked Takami, in shock.

"Yes, she did." Crane answered.

Macao was shocked as well after knowing that he was attacked by the princess and he confronted her and asked, "You have the nerve to take me down like this?"

"You're not gonna get my father's crown!" Zia-Lin shouted.

"Watch me. I'm gonna do whatever it takes to take down your dad. But first...I'm gonna deal with that peasant!" Macao replied, looked at Samurai with full hatred.

"Dude, your plan will never work! Not with us in the way!" Samurai exclaimed.

"What are you gonna do about it?" asked Macao.

* * *

Now that we know Zia-Lin can kick butt, let's see what she does next!

**Voice of Crane: Amir Talai**


	30. Attack Macao!

And the action begins!

* * *

Chapter 30: Attack Macao!

Macao immediately came over towards Samurai while holding a sword behind him and he looked at him with a huge amount of hatred and venom and asked, "Have anything to say?"

"Just one..." Samurai replied, then striking him in the face with his leg.

Once Macao got attacked by Samurai, he can tell that Samurai's gonna take him down and he growls in response as he got himself up and said, "Army, attack the peasant! Do whatever you want with him, but do not bring any harm to Zia-Lin! I'll deal with her!"

Just then, Takami broke out his firepower and threw it out of his wrists to take Macao down, but Macao dodged them flawlessly and went forward to punch him, but got stopped by Kiba and Phoenix as they punched them straight to the face while Kiba used his blue flame power to fight him off and before long, all of Macao's posse went in to take down Samurai, but all of the Five, plus the Bushido-Akio's and the Elemental Hazards went there to defend Samurai and Zia-Lin.

Tigress, Cody, Tamaki, Logan and Tsunami fought off some of the army with multiple quick punches as Tigress took them down with her usual kung-fu moves and attacked them as harder while Cody and Logan tackled them with all of Logan's MMA moves and Logan fought them off by wrestling them and smacking them straight in the face. Tamaki and Tsunami teamed up to attack the other half as Tamaki messes with their minds and punched them straight to the head as Tsunami grabbed them by the wrists and slammed them down to the ground and kicked them straight in the groin.

"That's how a Bushido-Akio tackles an opponent." Tsunami responded.

Meanwhile, Po, Monkey, Max, Blaze, Mako, Luna and Zoey came together to break all the posse down and one of them laughed at them and said, "You will never outmatch me...especially that little puny cub down there."

Max lets out a small snarl after one posse called him out because of his size and he asked, "Is that what you think?"

"Go ahead and try me, shrimp." one posse replied.

Max immediately smirked at him and he went ahead and clawed him straight in the nuts, causing one of the posse to squeal in pain and Blaze went over towards that guy that called Max out and swiped him in the face with his tail.

"That's for my friend!" Blaze replied, growling.

"Why, you little...!"

He took out his sword to slay him, but Mako went over to him and flipped him over and bashed him straight in the head while Zoey and Luna flipped them over and kicked them straight into the nuts and threw them down hard and slammed them through the wall and Po worked with Monkey to attack them with the usage of their fists and feet as Po bounced them off with his belly as Monkey climbed towards the top of the palace and kicked them down to the ground hard.

The one that called out Max was gonna get that cub back and he was gonna slay him, but he felt something burning behind him and when he turned around, he saw that his pants were on fire and yelped in pain all thanks to Blaze.

"What's wrong, too hot for you?" asked Blaze.

Blaze breathed out more fire as he struck the other half of the posse and as he saw them run away, Blaze exclaimed, "And don't come back!"

Max came over and Blaze a little fist-bump for that and he said, "Let's see what else we can do."

"I'm on it!" Blaze exclaimed.

Meanwhile, all the others continued fighting Macao's posse and that left Macao sneaking to the palace with the sword in his hand and Samurai realized that he's gonna kill the king and he turned to Zia-Lin and said, "Follow me."

Zia-Lin followed Samurai as they went inside the palace to see what Macao is up to and Zia stayed right beside Samurai in case something goes down and Samurai whispered, "Stay close to me."

"I will." Zia-Lin replied.

* * *

Awesome action! But that's not the half of it!

**Voice of Blaze: Ben Diskin**


	31. Saving the King

And we get to see the king getting rescued by Samurai and shows that he's not just a peasant...without even proving it.

* * *

Chapter 31: Saving the King

Samurai and Zia-Lin walked through the underground parts of the Jade Palace in order to find out what Macao is actually up to and at the same time, Zia-Lin is also concerned about her father's safety and well-beling and hopes that he'll be okay and if something does happen to him, Zia-Lin's gonna kick his butt so hard that it'll send his royal nuts up a notch and as they walked by, they can hear a couple of voices from a further distance.

"You hear something?" asked Samurai.

"I think I can." Zia replied.

Both of them quietly tiptoed over towards the steps and the voices grew a little closer and as they kept going, they can hear Macao talking with several of his posse and what they had to hear was pretty grim and disturbing in many details than ever.

"Do anything you want to the king. Poison him, drown him, bash him in the head, stab him, torture him...I don't care! Just do your jobs! That crown belongs to me and I'll make Zia-Lin my queen, no matter what it takes!" Macao shouted.

"What about the peasant, boss?" asked another one of his lackeys.

"I'll handle the peasant myself. I'm gonna behead him." Macao replied.

Samurai was definitely shocked to hear that he's gonna be beheaded by Macao and he said, "This guy is totally nuts."

"The only person he's gonna be beheaded is himself!" Zia-Lin whispered.

"Let's go save your dad first." Samurai whispered.

Zia-Lin nodded her head in agreement and focused on saving her father from harm and they quietly departed out of there to find where the king is held captive and suddenly, they heard a 'psst' sound from out of nowhere and they see Xun coming in, urging them to follow him and they did follow him to where the king is and before long, they walked towards this cell where Zia-Lin sees two armed guards blocking them.

"Your dad's being held in there until Macao comes to kill him." Xun whispered.

"I'll take care of it." Zia-Lin replied.

Soon enough, Zia comes towards the cell before she got herself blocked off by those armed guards and Zia wasn't gonna have it and she comes towards both of them and punched them out with a single blow and threw them to the wall, knocking them out. She then grabs the keys from one of the guards, unlocks the door and opens it and sees her father shackled up.

"Daddy?" asked Zia.

The king looked up and he saw the sight of his daughter coming for her and Zia saw her dad bruised, beaten and a little bloody and he said, "Zia-Lin..."

"Daddy, are you okay?" asked Zia-Lin.

"I'm fine. I'm so glad to see you." the king replied, in relief.

Zia-Lin quickly unlocked the chains and shackles from his feet and arms and once he stood up, Zia immediately went to her father and hugged him tightly and the king responded with a huge hug because he deeply appreciated the fact that Zia could actually save the only treasure he can always cherish.

Samurai comes over and clears his throat and said, "Excuse me. I don't wanna interrupt, but we really need to get you out of here before Macao comes back."

"That's right. We gotta go." Zia replied.

"Yes, there's really no telling what he'll do next." the king answered.

Samurai went over to help the king after noticing that he can barely stand and he helped him to get out of the prison cell and the king was really surprised that this peasant is helping him and he panted heavily and Samurai said, "We got you, your highness."

"You came here with my daughter to save me?" asked the king.

"Yes." Samurai replied.

"Why?" asked the king.

"Even though I'm not really a royal, I would always do everything I can to keep the people I care about safe from harm." Samurai replied.

The king had to hand it to Samurai...for anyone that would put others first before himself is a remarkable reminder that there are good people around, despite them not being a royal and that he cares for Zia-Lin and wants to do everything he can to help her and the king said, "Thank you."

Just then, they found themselves surrounded by half of Macao's posse and just then...in comes Macao coming in seeing all three of them and said, "Well, isn't this a pretty sight?"

* * *

What's Macao doing here? You'll see soon!


	32. Personal Revenge

We see Macao's reason for revenge against Samurai...in a much personal setting!

* * *

Chapter 32: Personal Revenge

Macao stood face to face with Samurai and he growls at him and said, "Your attempts to escape will be futile...because all three of you will never get out until I get what I really want."

The king growls at Macao for this and he said, "Macao! I should've know that this was a source of your treachery!"

Macao laughs proudly and he responded, "Well...what did you expect? I wanted to get you out of the way so I can be king and your daughter will be my queen and she'll have to do whatever I say because I am her superior!"

"How many times do I have to say this to your face? I will never be your queen!" Zia-Lin shouted.

"I don't wanna hear it from you! You already made me mad when you started dating that worthless peasant! And kissed him! You should've been kissing me!" Macao shouted.

"What did Samurai ever do to you?" asked Zia-Lin, growling.

"Took over my future bride! You should've deserved someone better than him! He'll never be worth anything to you!" Macao exclaimed.

"Excuse me! I think I can speak for myself on this one. You think that being royal is very important to you, don't you? Think that you can rule over everything and have people come over to you and take care of your every need? And your position is to make people like us feel less than? We're people just like you! I may not be royal, nor do I have a royal bloodline or live in a fancy people with a buttload of servants, but that doesn't make me less than anyone else! I don't have to be royal to have a family, a job and everything that I have are all that I am deeply grateful for. You think you have it all, don't you? Take away any part of what you got and what do you have?" asked Samurai.

"A desire to have Zia-Lin to myself." Macao replied, with a growl.

"Those who have pride will have their downfall. And Zia will never spend the rest of her life with somebody like you who feels like that." Samurai responded.

The king was completely amazed with how Samurai's words came out and it made him re-think about him being a peasant because anyone that puts her daughter first and her well-being means that she's very secure in herself. Samurai went on to say, "You don't deserve to have someone like her because she's beautiful, smart, funny, kind and very great to be around. In case you didn't figure it out, we all come in different sizes and shapes and we're all one person. Put that in your crown."

Macao couldn't believe everything that Samurai just said and Zia said, "I am so proud of you, Samurai!"

Macao seethed deeply and he went over to Zia-Lin and straight-up slapped her in face for cheering Samurai on and that was the straw that broke Samurai's back when he saw Macao slapping her in the face and that did not sit well with him at all.

"Hey! You can't hit a girl! That's just sick!" Samurai shouted.

"Shut up! You're gonna feel the same way I felt when she dated you!" Macao roared, pulling out his sword.

* * *

More action to come!


	33. Battle Time!

FINAL BATTLE! Samurai vs. Macao is up! But Samurai ain't alone.

* * *

Chapter 33: Battletime!

Macao brought in his sword to stab Samurai with it, but Samurai immediately pulled out his trusty sword/staff and whacked it out of his grasp, much to the surprise of everyone else that just witnessed this and it even shocked the crap out of Macao and figured that he's a bigger threat than he thought and Samurai immediately socked him in the face and got himself up to his feet and Samurai puts on his kendo headband and half-ripped gloves and he was immediately ready for battle.

Macao couldn't believe what he was seeing, yet he's not intimidated by Samurai's intentions at all and he said, "You think a peasant like you can stand up to the future king? You haven't seen what I am totally capable of! I am the third generation of royal fighters as well as my grandfather, great-grandfather and I can tell you by now..."

"Just shut up and fight already, dude!" Samurai shouted.

There was definitely no time to waste as Macao ran over to Samurai and attempted to slice him off, but Samurai missed very quickly and he did a backflip and slugged Macao straight to the face with his feet and he received a huge cheer from all the royal servants.

Samurai immediately focused on getting Zia-Lin to safety and he turned to the others, "You guys make sure Zia-Lin and the king get out of there safely!"

Zia-Lin immediately dismissed this and she stood by Samurai's side and said, "Let me fight him!"

"Zia...it could be dangerous for you." Samurai replied.

"Did you forget that I know kung-fu? I can handle this guy as much as you can." Zia-Lin responded.

"Daughter...are you sure?" asked the king.

Zia-Lin looked at her father straight in the eye and she replied, "I'm certain. Sometimes, you have to let me take care of things on my own."

The king had to hand it to her...she has always wanted to be independent and be her own person and sometimes, he thinks that she wasn't quite ready for that yet because he still sees her as his little girl. But there comes a time in a daughter's life when she's old enough to make her own choices and that her father has to let her grow a little bit and he said, "Very well. Just be careful."

"I will, daddy." Zia-Lin replied.

"Isn't that precious? Too bad that I'm still gonna make you my personal queen/slave." Macao spat out.

The king snarled at Macao for this as he went with the others for safety and he quickly turned to Macao with a venomous cold stare and said, "You will pay for this insolence!"

Once Samurai and Zia-Lin were alone, Macao and his army were ready to take down Samurai and with Zia-Lin in the way, Macao was gonna go all the way to make her his queen, but Samurai will completely stop him from happening and Macao said, "Looks like it's just me and you."

"Guess it is." Samurai replied.

Immediately afterwards, Samurai lunged at Macao as he attacked him straight to the face and multiple amounts of his shin and he flipped him over numerous times and punched them to the jaw really hard while Macao got himself up and growled at Samurai for attacking him and he brought in his sword to attack him with it, but Samurai brought in his staff-sword and both of them whacked the weapons towards each other.

Samurai kept on his toes as he ducked and dodged every strike Macao brought in as Samurai fought back with the sword and it seems as though both skills are evenly matched and Macao wanted to break Samurai down hard and he wanted to do this now, but Samurai already knew what he was gonna do and no matter what, he'll never let Macao break him.

"You seem very skilled...for a peasant." Macao said, panting.

"Deal with it." Samurai responded.

"Enough talk. Let's end this." Macao replied.

Samurai went ahead and pulled out his major move to use against Macao and as Samurai was patient, he immediately brought him his maximum move; pulling out his staff and showcased his kendo samurai sword as he clacked off Macao's sword and whacked it harder out of his hands...in which enraged and infuriated Macao.

"How dare you?" Macao growled.

"How dare I what?" Samurai asked, with a smirk.

Zia-Lin was cheering for Samurai and she was looking forward to give him a taste of his own medicine someday and she said, "Give it to him, Samurai!"

"Who's side are you on?!" Macao shouted, turning to Zia-Lin.

Macao was already irritated enough with Zia-Lin cheering for Samurai and he turned to Samurai and said, "You see what you have done? You made her turn against me!"

"That's a full-blown, lie, dude." Samurai argued.

"You're the liar! Did you honestly think that she'd love you when she already had someone like me?!" Macao exclaimed.

"You mean, an obsessive, violent, narcicisstic douchebag like you that only wants power and respect?" asked Samurai.

"I've had just about enough of you! Now get ready to die, peasant!" Macao screamed.

* * *

That's just the sample. Part 2 of the final battle will be the main course!


	34. The Last Battle

Final fight is here!

* * *

Chapter 34: The Last Fight

Macao was completely fed up with dealing with Samurai and he keeps lunging at him and Samurai fought him with all of his might and his kendo/kung-fu skills are considered one of the most advanced and unexpectedly skilled amongst Macao's...and Macao does not want to be underestimated by that and as much as Samurai fought, Macao fought even harder as he pummeled, kicked, clawed, scratched, punched, mauled and slammed down Samurai so hard to the point where he was all bloody, black and blue.

Samurai was thrown down hard and he groaned in pain as he coughed a few times with blood coming out of his face, but he wasn't gonna go down. He refused to stay down and defeat and he's gonna keep fighting until the very end as he got himself back up, despite his legs were shaking up.

"Still on your feet? Why won't you give up?" asked Macao.

Samurai panted heavily as he looked at Macao in the eye and answered, "Because I don't give up on anything. For the rest of my life...I've always been told to never quit. Even when something stands in your way or if someone stands in your way, I'll always rise up from the ashes and keep fighting until the very end. I'll gladly risk it all to keep fighting you. But just know this...Zia-Lin will never have you."

"That's where you're wrong, peasant. She will have me!" Macao said, bringing in his sword to kill him.

Just then, a tiara pummeled his hand down, causing him to drop the sword from his hand and to the floor and when Macao turned around, he received a shock to see that it was Zia-Lin that actually did it and he asked, "How could you?"

"Because you don't deserve me! And I'm sure as hell I don't deserve to be with you! I've already made up my choice on who I love." Zia-Lin replied.

Macao could see that Zia-Lin made it clear that she's in love with Samurai and he didn't take that lightly and he grabbed her by the hand and said, "Is that what you want? To be a worthless nothing to that...that peasant?! I will not allow this to happen!"

"Shut up! He may be a peasant...but he's my peasant!" Zia-Lin replied, with a growl.

"I said no!" Macao shouted.

And then...Zia-Lin released herself from his grasp and spat on his face...something that did not sit really well for Macao in response to that and Zia-Lin immediately went towards Samurai and she comforted him and that literally reached the breaking point for him as he made the decision to end both of their lives as he pulls in his sword and plans to slay them in rage.

"If I can't have Zia-Lin, nobody will!" Macao shouted, crazily.

Zia-Lin could tell that this is how it's gonna be...if she's gonna be killed, at least she'll be with Samurai on the other end as Macao attempts to kill them, but for some reason...Macao got knocked out hard and clawed straight to the butt and slammed to the wall and got knocked out unconscious.

Zia-Lin looked up and sees Xun, Blaze and Max taking care of business from there and Blaze said, "Never say that the dragon can't save the day."

Samurai looks up and he sees his tiger brother and his dragon friend and Xun standing there and he asked, "What took you guys so long?"

* * *

Final chapter is coming up! Macao isn't killed off, by the way.


	35. Just the Same

And this is how it all ends!

* * *

Chapter 35: Just the Same

Soon enough, the king's armed guards detained Macao and took him in handcuffs as well as his posse to charge them with treason against the crown and harassment and consipracy to commit murder against the king and as this was happening, the king...alonside Zia-Lin and Samurai among others were still amazed by what had happened and the king was astonished by how Samurai managed to save the king and Zia-Lin and how they were both saved by a peasant.

"You have saved us, peasant." the king replied.

Samurai bowed to the king in respect and he responded, "It was nothing. Just doing the right thing."

"What do you mean it was nothing? You merely saved me from losing my crown and my life and kept my daughter safe from harm from Macao. If I had known that this was on his mind, we would've banished him from our kingdom." the king responded.

"Or at least sentenced him to death by fire." Blaze chimed in.

Samurai glared at Blaze for that random comment and rose an eyebrow at him, which made the dragon chuckle nervously and asked, "Did I say that out loud?"

"Maybe I might've underestimated you, peasant. You do have a way of fending off those who try to threaten our lives." the king added.

"He's very wonderful, daddy." Zia-Lin replied.

"Yes, he is...however, you're still a peasant. I'm not really sure if you and my daughter are right for each other." the king answered.

Most of them were really shocked by what the king just said and Okami was completely livid by those comments and she said, "Now hold on there, your highness! This 'peasant' saved your daughter and you and you say he's still not right for you?! You ought to be grateful that he saved your royal butt!"

"Okami...it's okay." Samurai said, calmly.

Zia-Lin looked at her father in the eye and she said, "Daddy! I love Samurai!"

Then, that revelation came forward and shocked the king among others that Zia-Lin is in love with Samurai and he asked, "You are?"

"Yes. He's sweet, kind, funny, gentle, polite and he's humble. Not to mention, he's honest, loyal, trusting and everything I would want from someone; whether he's royal or not, I love him." Zia-Lin replied.

"How did you figure that out?" asked the king.

Zia-Lin sighed heavily and replied, "A few days ago. I know it seems too quick, but he's really the best person to be by my side. He may not have a royal bloodline, but I would be willing to give up being a princess to spend the rest of my life with him."

The king could see that it's obvious that she loves Samurai more than anything and he's very reluctant to the fact that she's in love with a peasant, but he can't overlook the fact that Samurai saved huis daughter's life from Macao and he lets out a deep sigh and asked, "You really do love him, do ya?"

"Yes, I do." Zia-Lin replied.

"And does he feel the same way?" asked the king.

Samurai immediately responded, "I do love Zia-Lin a lot and I've never felt this way about anyone...let alone a princess. Even if wasn't a princess, I'd love her just the same."

And that says it all and the king said, "From this point...my daughter Zia-Lin will date whomever she deems worthy."

Zia-Lin was completely overjoyed when she heard her father say that she can date whoever she's worthy of and she made the immediate choice of running to Samurai and hugging him tightly and said, "I choose you, Samurai."

Samurai chuckled softly and said, "Call me Sam."

Both of them kissed each other on the lips and Zia-Lin has never felt this happy before and that he loves her back really made her feel like love still stands strong and Max turned to the king and said, "I think she'll make an awesome fit for our family."

"If she's happy with him, then I'm happy for her." the king replied.

* * *

And that's it! Samurai is in love with the princess! Might not be the happy ending I originally planned, but it's good enough! Happy new year, guys! Thanks for reading and stay tuned for another awesome KFP fic!


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